In the Bill's statement of purpose, the government noted that women participate substantively in panchayats, municipal bodies, yet their representation in state assemblies and Parliament is still limited.
The Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal tabled the Women's Reservation Bill in the Lok Sabha amid opposition uproar on the second day of the Special Parliament Session that commenced today in the new parliament building. The bill which is aimed at enabling greater participation of women in policy-making at state and national levels, will come into effect only after the delimitation exercise is undertaken, which is expected to be held after 2026, and will continue for 15 years.
Introducing the bill in the lower house, Law Minister Meghwal said that once it comes into force, the "number of women MPs in Lok Sabha will rise to 181 from 82 currently." Lok Sabha has been adjourned for the day after the bill was tabled.
On Monday, the Union Cabinet cleared the Women Reservation Bill in a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "We want that more and more women join the development process of the country," Modi said as he spoke on the bill.
The Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, earlier known as Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty Eighth Amendment) Bill, 2008, is the first bill introduced in the new Parliament building.
The bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha in 2010 but was stalled in the Lok Sabha. The 2008 bill sought to reserve one-third of all seats in Parliament and state assemblies for women.
In the bill's statement of purpose, the government noted that women participate substantively in panchayats, municipal bodies, yet their representation in state assemblies and Parliament is still limited. Role of women is extremely important for achieving the goal of making India a developed country by 2047, the government said, which PM Modi has also stated repeatedly in his speeches.
Seats reserved for women will be rotated after each delimitation exercise, according to the bill.
There have been several efforts to introduce women's reservation bill in the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies since 1996. It has also not necessarily received support from all politicians as there has been strong opposition from different political parties which have stalled its passage in the last three decades. In the 1990s, Rashtriya Janta Dal (RJD), Samajwadi Party (SP), Janata Dal (United), and Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) majorly rallied against the proposition.
Data shows that women MPs account for nearly 15 per cent of Lok Sabha strength while their representation is below 10 per cent in many state assemblies.
BSP and JDU have now come out in support of the bill. BSP supremo Mayawati said her party will support the bill even if the party’s demand for a quota within the quota for the SC, ST and OBC is not met.
The current bill says a third of seats in Lok Sabha and assemblies will be reserved for women and filled by direct election. Within the quota, a third of the seats will be for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. However, nothing has been clearly mentioned about the Other Backward Castes (OBC).