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As the Congress led Opposition voted against the bills aimed at paving the path for 33% women’s reservations in Lok Sabha and state assemblies by 2029, women across the nation stand deprived of their legitimate right of greater participation in parliamentary democracy. It was highly unfortunate to see that the Congress led Opposition parties could not rise above their narrow political interests and chose to block the attempts for greater participation of women in the legislative journey of the nation. It is not for the first time that such an attempt has been made by the same political parties on the one pretext or the other, but they have repeatedly indulged in such exercise in last three decades showing their extreme anti-women face again and again. The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, who left no stone unturned for the smooth passage of these bills has rightly characterized the opposition parties as anti-reform, stating that they prioritized their own political interests over the long overdue empowerment of Indian women. In a deeply emotional moment, he compared the defeat of the bill to foeticide, lamenting that the dreams of millions of women were murdered on the floor of the parliament. While expressing deep disappointment at seeing opposition leaders celebrate the bill’s failure, calling their cheers a direct insult to the dignity of every woman in the country.
It was highly unfortunate to see that the Congress led Opposition parties could not rise above their narrow political interests and chose to block the attempts for greater participation of women in the legislative journey of the nation
It is to be noted that the Women’s Reservation Bill remained pending for nearly three decades, and despite being brought forward in letter and spirit by the present Modi government, earlier attempts were obstructed and failed due to lack of political will. The bills were introduced to promote women’s empowerment, ensure greater representation, and strengthen the federal structure, aligning constitutional provisions with contemporary political and governance needs. As the Nari Shakti Vandan Act, 2023 mandates reservation for women through delimitation after the post-2026 Census, it became necessary to amend it so as to implement it by 2029 without causing any delay. While delays in conducting the Census were caused due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the decision to conduct caste enumeration made the entire process a huge exercise. To ensure that the women of the country get their rightful place in the parliamentary democracy by 2029, the amendments were required which the Congress led Opposition was able to block as its passage required two-third majority in the parliament.
In desperate attempts to block the implementation of the Nari Shakti Vandan Act, 2023, the opposition raised unconstitutional demands of reservations for Muslim and OBC women. As there is no constitutional provision for religion-based reservation, it is to be noted that the Opposition has historically opposed OBC reservation and caste-based affirmative measures, including the Kaka Kalelkar and Mandal Commission recommendations. While the passage of Women Reservation framework failed thrice in the Parliament i.e. during 1996, 1998 and 2003 due to Opposition blocking it on flimsy grounds, in 2023, the Nari Shakti Vandan Act was passed as the first Bill in the new Parliament building due to strong resolve of the Modi government. But it’s highly deplorable that despite earlier commitments, the Opposition is now resisting its implementation and blocking any move to ensure greater participation of women in India’s parliamentary democracy.
While the Congress led Opposition may temporarily rejoice in blocking the implementation of women’s reservation, there is no doubt that the women of the country may not be deprived of their rightful place in Indian democracy for long. The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, has rightly said that the dynastic-parties blocked the bill because they feared that common women, once empowered, would challenge their inherited political strongholds. He has assured that while the bill faced a temporary setback in the House, but his resolve remains unshakable and the mission to ensure women’s rightful place in democracy will continue.