New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi thanked legislators Thursday for passing the Women’s Reservation Bill in the Lok Sabha, calling it a golden moment in India’s parliamentary journey.
The Bill, which seeks to reserve one-third of seats in the Lower House and state assemblies, was passed in Lok Sabha on Wednesday and was tabled in the Rajya Sabha Thursday.
“Every member, every party leader of this House is part of that golden moment,” Modi said, adding the decision had pumped more energy into women empowerment in the country.
He said the confidence this Bill will give to women will propel the country to “unimaginable heights”.
#WATCH | Women's Reservation Bill | Prime Minister Narendra Modi says, "Yesterday was a golden moment of India's Parliamentary journey. All the members of this House deserve that golden moment…Yesterday's decision and today when we cross the last mile after Rajya Sabha (passing… pic.twitter.com/s6mRNxPB2G
— ANI (@ANI) September 21, 2023
The whole Lower House came together on Wednesday to pass the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam Bill by 454 votes in favour and 2 against.
The Bill, which has been introduced in the Rajya Sabha, has been hanging for decades and will also need the approval of a majority of state legislatures to become law.
It has had a chequered history with a similar version first introduced in 1996. The last action was in 2010 when the Bill passed the Rajya Sabha but could not make it to the Lok Sabha due to objections from several parties. It lapsed as the Lok Sabha was dissolved in 2014.
The present form of the Bill, however, says it will be implemented only after the next Census and the following delimitation exercise, a decision that may push back the law till 2029.
The next Census, which was supposed to take place in 2021, has been postponed indefinitely, while the consequent boundary-drawing exercise may take another two to three years.
Defending this decision, Union Home Minister Amit Shah assured the Lok Sabha on Wednesday that the Census would take place soon after the 2024 general elections.
Congress Chairperson Sonia Gandhi opened the seven-hour discussion on the Bill Wednesday on an emotional note, remembering her “life partner” Rajiv Gandhi, who had for the first time brought the constitutional amendment for participation of women in local bodies.
While that became a reality, reservation for women in state assemblies and Parliament have been contentious. Data shows that women MPs account for only 15 per cent in the Lok Sabha, while that number is below 10 per cent in many state assemblies.
Gandhi demanded the government clear the “obstacles on the Bill’s path”, saying any more delay would be an act of “grave injustice” to Indian women.
Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra said the Bill be implemented soonest on the basis of the voters’ list.
During discussions Wednesday, the Opposition also made a strong pitch for women from other backward castes to be included within the overall reservation, following a caste census.