What’s the mess about Women Reservation Bill?
The origin
The proposed
legislation to reserve 33.3 per cent seats in Parliament and state legislatures
for women was drafted first by the H D Deve Gowda-led United Front government.
The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on September 12, 1996. Though it has
been introduced in Parliament several times since then, the Bill could not be
passed because of lack of political consensus.
The provisions
Reservation for women at each level of legislative
decision-making, starting with the Lok Sabha, down to state and local legislatures.
If the Bill is passed, one-third of the total available seats would be reserved
for women in national, state, or local governments. In continuation of the
existing provisions already mandating reservations for scheduled caste and
scheduled tribes, one-third of such SC and ST candidates must be women.
In favour
The opposition
Various political parties have staunchly opposed it because
they fear many of their male leaders would not get a chance to fight elections
if 33.3 per cent seats are reserved for women. The Bill has also been opposed
by politicians from the socially and economically backward classes. They argue
that reservation would only help women of the elitist groups to gain seats,
therefore causing further discrimination.
The status
The Bill had been referred to the Parliamentary Standing
Committee on Law and Justice, and Personnel, which gave its report in December
2009. It recommended passage of the Bill in its present form and suggested that
the issue should not be left to the discretion of political parties. The
central government cleared the Bill on February 25, 2010. If the Rajya Sabha
passes the bill, its real impact will be felt only when it passes through the
Lok Sabha.
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