Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (April 11) urged the floor leaders of all parties in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, seeking their support in implementing women’s reservation in the 2029 Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. A three-day session is to be held between April 16 and 18 to take up the matter.
However, Opposition leaders such as the Congress’s Mallikarjun Kharge said that the government did not care to share details on delimitation, a key aspect of the reservation matter, adding that discussions would be fruitless without them.
Emphasising that the issue stands beyond party differences and individuals, Modi wrote in a letter to the floor leaders, “After extensive deliberations, we have concluded that the time has come to implement the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam (Women’s Reservation Act) in its true spirit across the country.”
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“It is imperative that the 2029 Lok Sabha elections and Assembly elections are conducted with women’s reservation in place,” Modi added.
“I am writing this letter so that we may all come together in one voice to pass this amendment,” he said.
“This special sitting is an opportunity to further strengthen our democracy. It is also a moment to reiterate our collective commitment to moving forward together, taking everyone along. I am writing this letter to you with this spirit and purpose,” the PM further wrote.
The prime minister also recalled the moment in 2023 when MPs across party lines came together to back the women’s Bill. Hailing the episode, he said it was a memorable moment that reflected India’s unity and the entire world saw “how a major decision was taken collectively to fulfil a commitment to the women of the country”.
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The provision to provide 33 per cent reservation to women in the Lower House of Parliament and state assemblies was brought by amending the Constitution three years ago.
Modi also said that a society moves forward only when women get the opportunity to progress, make decisions and lead.
Special three-day session convened
The PM’s letter comes days ahead of a special three-day sitting of Parliament, as an extension of the Budget Session, starting April 16 when the proposed amendments to the Act are likely to be brought for consideration and clearance. The ruling Bharatiya Janata party has also issued a whip to all its members of Parliament, asking them to remain present in their respective House during the session.
On Wednesday (April 8), it has been reported that the Union Cabinet approved draft bills aimed at establishing a women’s quota prior to the parliamentary elections in 2029, as well as increasing the total number of Lok Sabha seats to 816, of which 273 will be reserved for women.
However, the PM’s letter stopped short of outlining what specific amendments the Centre intends to introduce to operationalise the law. Any information on the Act’s broader implementation framework was also found to be missing in the communication.
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Opposition reactions
Kharge, who is also the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, wrote a letter to Modi saying the special sitting was called without taking the Opposition into confidence. He said without the details of the delimitation and other aspects coming out, it would be “impossible” to have any useful talks on the “historic law”.
“The calling of a special sitting during the ongoing state elections only reinforces our belief that your government is hurrying the implementation of the bill to gain political mileage rather than truly empower women,” Kharge wrote in his letter.
Derek O’Brien, the leader of the Trinamool Congress in the Rajya Sabha, slammed the prime minister and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday (April 12), saying they were “mocking Parliament” and indulging in theatrics ahead of the upcoming elections in West Bengal.
(With agency inputs)
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