After being stuck for nearly three decades, the Women’s Reservation Bill has been listed for discussion at the Lok Sabha on September 20. The Bill proposes a 33 percent quota for women in Parliament and state legislatures. If ratified into a law, it may come into force only in 2029, despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s reiteration for of his commitment towards “women-led development”.
The Bill is almost similar to the one drafted during the Manmohan Singh-led Congress regime in 2010. Only two amendments to bring in quota for the Anglo-Indian community have been dropped in the new version.
The Bill will only come into effect after delimitation or redrawing of constituencies after “the relevant figures for the first Census taken after the commencement of the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-eighth Amendment) Act 2023 have been published,” it says.
