Women’s quota by 2029: PM calls for unity, Congress flags delimitation hurdle

New Delhi, Apr 12: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that the time has come for the implementation of the Women's Reservation Act in its true spirit and the 2029 Lok Sabha elections and Assembly elections are conducted with the quota for women in place.

In a letter to the floor leaders of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, ahead of the three-day special sittings of Parliament, Modi also asked all members to come together in one voice to pass the amendments to the women's reservation law, officially known as Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam.

"After extensive deliberations, we have reached the conclusion that the time has now come to implement the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam in its true spirit across the country. It is imperative that the 2029 Lok Sabha elections and Assembly elections are conducted with women's reservation in place," the Prime Minister said in his letter dated April 11.

Meanwhile, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has conveyed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that it would be "impossible" to have any useful discussion on the women's quota law without details of delimitation and other aspects, and demanded that an all-party meeting be called on the matter after the current round of state polls are over on April 29.

In his letter to PM Modi, Kharge said that calling Parliament's special sitting amid state polls reinforces the belief that the government is hurrying the implementation of women's reservation law for "political mileage".

"If the special sitting is meant to 'strengthen our democracy' and 'moving forward together, taking everyone along' as you write in the letter, then I would suggest that the government convene an all-party meeting any time after April 29th to discuss the delimitation issue which is being linked to the amendment to the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023," Kharge said.

Kharge's letter came in response to a missive from the Prime Minister on the special sitting of Parliament for a discussion on the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam from April 16.

The Budget Session of Parliament has been extended, and a special three-day sitting of the House has been convened on April 16 to 18.

The Women's Reservation Act will ensure an increase in the number of Lok Sabha seats to 816, of which 273 will be reserved for women.

The provision to provide 33% reservation to women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies was brought by amending the Constitution in 2023.

However, the women's quota would have come into effect only after the completion of the delimitation exercise on the basis of the 2027 Census. This meant the reservation would not have become enforceable before 2034 if the present law remains as is.

To implement it from the 2029 Lok Sabha elections, changes were needed in the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam; hence, the government is holding a special session to pass the amendments to the law.

PTI