Women Reservation Act, 2023 - Women in Politics | 06

Dec 2023

For Prelims: Constitution (128th Amendment) Bill, 2023, Constitution (106th

Amendment) Act, 2023, Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, State Legislative Assemblies,
Delimitation Process, Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
Against Women, 1979, Constitution (104th Amendment) Act, 2019, Supreme
Court, Triple Test, World Economic Forum (WEF), Global Gender Gap Report
2023.

For Mains: Impact of Women’s Reservation Act, 2023 on promoting inclusivity in the
democracy, making it more participative and eliminating gender gap in the long run.

What is the Women's Reservation Act, 2023?

About:
The Constitution (106th Amendment) Act, 2023, reserves one-third of all
seats for women in Lok Sabha, State legislative assemblies, and the Legislative
Assembly of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, including those reserved
for SCs and STs.
The reservation will be effective after the publication of the census conducted
following the Act’s commencement and endures for a 15-year period, with
potential extension determined by parliamentary action.
The rotation of seats allocated for women will be governed by parliamentary
legislation after each delimitation process.
Currently, around 15% of the total members of the 17th Lok Sabha (2019-
2024) are women while in state legislative assemblies, women on average
constitute 9% of the total members.
Legislative Progression of Women's Reservation Bills:
 The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against
Women, 1979 mandates the eradication of gender-based discrimination in
political and public spheres, with India being a signatory.
Despite progress, the representation of women in decision-making bodies
remains relatively low, increasing from 5% in the first Lok Sabha to 15%
in the 17th Lok Sabha.
Constitutional amendments aimed at reserving seats for women in Parliament and
state legislative assemblies were proposed in 1996, 1998, 1999, and 2008.
The first three Bills(1996, 1998, 1999) expired when their respective Lok
Sabhas dissolved.
The 2008 Bill was introduced in and approved by the Rajya Sabha but also
lapsed when the 15th Lok Sabha dissolved.
However, in the present case, it will require adherence to the “Triple Test”
laid down by the Supreme Court.

The 1996 Bill underwent examination by a Joint Committee of Parliament, while the
2008 Bill was scrutinized by the Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances,
Law, and Justice.
Both committees endorsed the idea of seat reservations for women. Some of
their recommendations included:
considering reservations for women from other backward classes OBCs) at
an appropriate time
implementing reservations for a 15-year period with subsequent reviews
devising a plan for reserving seats for women in the Rajya Sabha and
state legislative councils.

Issue of Triple Test:

Government sources said that reservations for women would require clearing the
"triple test".
In 2010, the Supreme Court held that backwardness with relation to local bodies has
to be “political” – such as underrepresentation in politics. It may differ from “social
and educational backwardness”, which is used to grant reservations for seats in
educational institutions or government jobs.
The Supreme Court, while deciding on the legality of OBC reservations in
Maharashtra local body elections, in a verdict in 2021, had set out a three-fold
 test that state governments have to follow to provide these reservations.
First, the state was mandated to set up a dedicated commission to examine
backwardness in local bodies within the state.
Second, states were required to determine the size of the quota based on the
commission survey data.
Third, these reservations, combined with Scheduled Castes and Scheduled
Tribes quotas, could not be more than 50% of the total seats in the local body.
In 2022 and 2023, the Supreme Court continued to make it mandatory for states to
implement the triple test before the OBC reservation in Local Body elections.
However, such a “triple test” is not applied to political reservations for
SC/STs, since the reservation in elections applies under Article 334.
The “triple test” for representation of SC/STs “only applies in the case of
quota for promotions in government employment.”

What are Different Committees and Their Reports on the Issue?

1971 Committee on the Status of Women in India (CSWI):

It was created in response to a request from the UN for a report on the
status of women ahead of International Women’s Year, 1975.
Set up by the erstwhile Ministry of Education and Social Welfare.
 It examined the constitutional, administrative, and legal provisions that have a
bearing on the social status of women, their education, and employment — and the
impact of these provisions.
It published the report - ‘Towards Equality’ as per which, the Indian state had
failed in its constitutional responsibility to ensure gender equality.
Following this, several states began announcing reservations for women in
local bodies.
1987 Committee under Margaret Alva
In 1987, the government constituted a 14-member committee under then Union
Minister Margaret Alva.
In 1988, the committee presented the National Perspective Plan for Women
1988-2000 to the Prime Minister.
Among the committee’s 353 recommendations was the reservation of seats
for women in elected bodies.
Consequence
In 1992, the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment Acts were
introduced under the Prime Ministership of P V Narasimha Rao.
It was the doing of the National Perspective Plan for Women that
mandated the reservation of 1/3rd of seats for women (via 73rd and 74th
Amendments) in Panchayati Raj institutions (PRIs) and offices of the
chairperson at all levels of PRIs, and in urban local bodies respectively.
Many States such as Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar,
Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Kerala have made legal provisions to
ensure 50% reservation for women in local bodies.

First Women’s Reservation Bill

On September 12, 1996, the Government of India tabled 81st Constitutional

Amendment Bill which sought to reserve 1/3rd of seats for women in Parliament and
state legislatures.
However, many MPs, especially those belonging to the OBCs, opposed the Bill.
Consequently, the bill was sent to a Select Committee of Parliament headed by
Geeta Mukherjee.

Geeta Mukherjee Committee 1996:

The Committee had 21 members from LS and 10 from RS.
The panel noted that seats for women had been reserved within the SC/ST
quotas, but there was no such benefit for OBC women because there is no
provision for OBC reservation.
It recommended that the government “may consider…extending…reservation to
OBCs also at the appropriate time so that the women belonging to OBCs will also
get the benefit of reservation”.
2013 Committee on the Status of Women:
In 2013, the Ministry of Women and Child Development constituted a
committee on the status of women, which recommended ensuring at least 50%
 reservation of seats for women in the Local bodies, State Legislative
Assemblies, Parliament, Ministerial levels and all decision‐making bodies of the
government.

Present Status of Women Representation

As per the World Economic Forum (WEF)’s Global Gender Gap Report 2023, India
has made strides in political empowerment, achieving 25.3% parity in this domain.
Women represent 15.1% of parliamentarians, which is the highest representation
since the inaugural report in 2006.

What is Status of Women’s Reservation in Panchayats and ULBs?

Women’s Reservation - Initiatives and Current Data

Early Initiatives:
In 1985, the state government of Karnataka implemented 25% reservation
for women in Mandal Praja Parishads with a sub-quota for scheduled caste
and scheduled tribe women, becoming the first state to do so.
In 1987, the erstwhile united Andhra Pradesh implemented 9% reservation
for women in gram panchayats.
In 1991, Odisha affected 33% reservation for women in Panchayats.
The 1992 Constitutional amendment made this quota national, and
inserted a 33% sub-quota for scheduled caste and scheduled tribe
women.
73th and 74th Amendments:
In 1992, following the recommendations of the National Perspective Plan for
Women 1988-2000, the 73rd and 74th Amendment Acts (1992) mandated the
reservation of 1/3rd of seats for women in Panchayati Raj institutions (PRIs)
and in urban local bodies.
‘Panchayat’, being “Local government”, is a State subject and part of the State
list of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India.
Article 243D of the Constitution ensures participation of women in PRIs by
mandating atleast 1/3rd reservation for women out of total number of seats
to be filled by direct election and number of offices of chairpersons of
Panchayats.

Status In Different States

States with >50% Reservation:

According to government data, as of Sept 2021, in at least 18 states, the
percentage of women elected representatives in PRIs was more than 50%:
Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh, Assam, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Odisha,
Kerala, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Manipur, Telangana,
Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh.
 These 18 states, including Gujarat and Kerala have also made legal
provisions for 50% reservation for women in PRIs.
Highest proportion of women representatives in PRIs - Uttarakhand
(56.02%)
Lowest - Uttar Pradesh (33.34%)
Overall percentage in India - 45.61%
Bihar was the first one to increase the reservation percentage to 50% (in
Panchayats and ULBs) in 2006 followed by Sikkim the next year.
The Nagaland Controversy:
In April 2023, Nagaland was amid controversies regarding the reservation of
seats for women in urban local body (ULB) polls.
The issue centers around the Nagaland Municipal Act of 2001, which
mandated a 33% reservation for women in ULB polls (as per 74th
amendment).
Many traditional tribal and urban organizations opposed it, arguing that it
would violate the special provisions granted by Article 371A.
Their apex tribal body argues that women have traditionally not been
part of decision-making bodies.
Nagaland is the only state where ULB seats are not reserved for
women.

What is Status of Women’s Reservation in Services in Different States?

Women’s Reservation and Horizontal Reservation:

The Constitution of India does not expressly permit reservation for women in
public employment. On the contrary, Article 16(2) prohibits discrimination in
public employment on the ground of sex.
Therefore, women can, at best, be provided only horizontal and not vertical
reservation on the basis of the Supreme Court’s pronouncement in the famous
Indra Sawhney’s case (1992).
Horizontal Reservation refers to the equal opportunity provided to categories of
beneficiaries such as women, veterans, the transgender community, and
individuals with disabilities, cutting through the vertical categories.
The horizontal quota is applied separately to each vertical category, and not
across the board.
For example, if women have 50% horizontal quota, then half of the
selected candidates will have to necessarily be women in each
vertical quota category i.e., half of all selected Scheduled Caste
candidates will have to be women, half of the unreserved or general
category will have to be women, and so on.
The Scenario of Women’s Job Quota in Different States:
Uttarakhand:
In 2006, Uttarakhand state government issued an order ensuring 30%
horizontal reservation for women candidates in the state. This reservation
was for public employment exclusively to state-domiciled women.
 In August 2022, the High Court of Uttarakhand stayed this order. However,
in Nov 2022, the Supreme Court allowed the government to continue with
its 16-year-old decision and stayed a HC order that had opened up the quota
for women from anywhere in India.
In January 2023, the government again came out with an ordinance to
continue with the provisions of the reservation.
Karnataka:
In 2022, the Karnataka government reserved 33% for outsourced women
employees in all the departments.
As per the circular, the state government recruits data entry operators,
housekeeping staff and other group D employees, drivers through
outsourcing.
The 33% reservation is applicable for all autonomous bodies, universities,
urban local bodies, and other government offices.
Tripura:
In 2022, on the occasion of Women's Day, Tripura govt has announced its
decision to give a reservation of 33% to all women for any state govt job,
or for higher educational institutions.
Punjab:
In 2020, the Punjab state govt approved 33% reservation for women in
direct recruitment for the Punjab Civil Services, boards and corporations.
The 'Punjab Civil Services (Reservation of Posts for Women) Rules, 2020'
provided such reservation for women for direct recruitment to posts in
government, as well as in recruitment to Boards and Corporations in Group
A, B, C, and D posts.
Bihar:
In 2016, the state cabinet granted 35% reservation to women in all
government jobs.
Earlier, the state govt also made a provision for a reservation of 35% for
women in the recruitment of police constabulary in the state.

Representation of Women in Other Sectors

Governance:
India has had one woman prime minister and two female presidents since
independence in 1947.
Fifteen women have served as chief ministers so far.
Judiciary:
India's Supreme Court has not had a single female chief justice so far.
As of August 2023, there were three women judges in the apex court of a
sanctioned strength of 34, 106 women judges out of 788 in the 25 high courts
and 7,199 in the lower courts.
Justice BV Nagarathna is in line to become the first woman Chief Justice of
India in 2027.
Defence And Police:
 As of March 2023, there were 6,993 women officers in the Indian army, 748
in the navy. The strength of women officers in the Indian Air Force stood at
1,636, excluding medical staff.
Women constitute 11.7% of the 2.1 million-strong police force.
Aviation:
India has the highest proportion of female pilots to males in the world, making
up 15% out of a total of about 10,000 pilots in the South Asian country, against
5% globally.
Agriculture:
With 62.9% female participation, agriculture has the highest percentage of
women workers, followed by manufacturing, at 11.2% in 2022.
Millions of Indian women are employed in unorganised sectors such as domestic
and daily wage labourers.
Corporate:
Women accounted for 18.2% of board seats at NIFTY 500 companies in
2023, with the life sciences sector reporting the highest female representation
on boards at 24%.
The tech industry has a high representation of women in the workforce at
34% but lags behind other industries when it comes to women in executive
positions. There are 8.9% of firms with women in top managerial posts.

What are the Issues Related to Delimitation?

Will come into effect after the Delimitation:

The reservation shall come into effect only after delimitation is undertaken and
delimitation will be undertaken only after the relevant figures of the next census
are published.
The 2021 Census that was postponed because of the Covid pandemic and
several other reasons has been further pushed to 2024-25 until further
orders.
The Union Home Minister explained that the decision to implement
reservation after delimitation is to ensure that a quasi-judicial body like
the Delimitation Commission can decide which seats to reserve, after
public consultation.
The Law Minister claimed that it was against the provisions of the
Constitution to provide reservation immediately, noting that someone may
challenge it in a court of law. And the government will not allow the Act to
get stuck in some technicality.
Present Issues With Delimitation:
According to rough estimates, the country's population has increased by about 30
percent since the last census in 2011. Therefore, the seats in the Lok Sabha
will also increase in the same proportion.
It is expected that there will be an increase of about 210 seats over the 543
seats in the current Lok Sabha. That means the total seats would likely be around
753.
Previous Delimitation Exercises

The Delimitation Commission of 2022 had taken about five years to complete the
exercise, based on the 2001 Census report.
Election Commission also said that delimitation exercises undertaken in the years
1952, 1963, 1973, and 2002 have not considered the exact number of women
in a constituency.
Even after the 2001 census, the delimitation exercise for Assam, Arunachal
Pradesh, Nagaland, and Manipur was left out by the 2002 Commission.
The delimitation exercise for the newly formulated Union territory of Jammu and
Kashmir went on for over two years between March 2020 to May 2022.
In Assam, it was started by the Election Commission in 2022, and the final draft was
published in August 2023. The process, however, has been challenged before the
Supreme Court.
As for Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland, the Supreme Court was informed recently
by the central government that it is "considering" setting up a delimitation commission
for the two states, while delimitation in Manipur would be delayed.

What is the OBC Issue?

Unlike SCs and STs, the Constitution does not provide for political reservation for Other
Backward Classes (OBCs) in the Lok Sabha or state assemblies.

OBC Issue with the Act: The women's reservation Act, which reserves 33% of seats
for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, does not include a quota for women
from the OBCs.
OBCs who constitute 41% of the population (as per the 2011 census) are
inadequately represented in the Lok Sabha, State Legislatures and Local
governments.
They have been demanding a separate quota for themselves in the Lok
Sabha and state assemblies, similar to the reservation for SCs and STs.
However, the government has not implemented such a quota, citing
legal and constitutional hurdles.
Several State Governments like Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra have
provided them representation in Local Body elections.
But the Supreme Court has put a cap of 50% on the overall
reservations (Vikas Kishanrao Gawali vs State of Maharashtra)
which limits OBC reservation to 27%.
This 50% upper limit is in the lines with the Indira Sawhney vs Union
of India judgment.
Strength of OBCs in Lok Sabha: The 17th Lok Sabha has around 120 MPs from the
OBC community. Which accounts for approximately 22% of the total Strength of
Lok Sabha
The Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2018 (insertion of new articles 330A and
332A) proposes to ensure a proportionate representation to OBC in
 representative bodies -- House of the People and the Legislative Assemblies of
the State.

Should There be an OBC Women Reservation Under the 33% Reservation?

Arguments in favor Arguments against

OBC women face multiple forms of The Act already provides for the
discrimination and oppression based reservation of seats for SC/ST
on their caste, class and gender. women, who are the most
They are often denied access to disadvantaged and vulnerable groups
education, health, employment, in the society.
political representation and social Adding another quota for OBC
justice. women would reduce the seats
OBC women constitute a large and available for the general category
diverse section of the population, of women, who also face
with different cultures, languages, discrimination and challenges in the
religions and regions. They have male-dominated political system.
different needs and aspirations The idea of having a separate
that may not be adequately reservation for OBC women would
represented by women from other create further divisions and
categories. conflicts among the women’s
movement. It would also undermine
 OBC women have been historically the solidarity and unity of women as
underrepresented and marginalized a collective force for social change.
in the political sphere, both at the Separate reservation for OBC women
national and state levels. They have would not address the root causes
faced barriers such as patriarchal of their problems, such as poverty,
norms, caste prejudices, violence illiteracy, violence, patriarchy,
and intimidation, lack of resources casteism and corruption.
and awareness, and low self- It would also not guarantee their
confidence. effective participation and
representation in the political
arena, as they may still face
obstacles such as tokenism, co-
option, manipulation and domination
by the male leaders of their parties
and communities.

What are Different Constitutional Provisions Related to Women’s

Reservation?

Reservation for Women in Lower House: The Act provides for inserting Article
330A to the constitution, which borrows from the provisions of Article 330, which
provides for reservation of seats to SCs/STs in the Lok Sabha.
The Act provides that reserved seats for women may be allotted by rotation to
different constituencies in states or Union Territories.
In the seats reserved for SCs/STs, the Act seeks to provide one-third of the
seats to be reserved for women on rotational basis.
Reservation for Women in State Legislative Assemblies: The Act introduces Article
332A, which mandates the reservation of seats for women in every state Legislative
Assembly. Additionally, one-third of the seats reserved for SCs and STs must be
allocated for women, and one-third of the total seats filled through direct
elections to the Legislative Assemblies shall also be reserved for women.
Reservation for Women in NCT of Delhi ( New clause in 239AA): Article 239AA to
the constitution grants special status to the Union Territory of Delhi as national
capital with regards to its administrative and legislative functioning.
Article 239AA(2)(b) was amended by the Act accordingly to add that the laws
framed by parliament shall apply to the National Capital territory of Delhi.
Commencement of Reservation (New article - 334A): The reservation will be
effective after the census conducted after the commencement of this Act has been
published. Based on the census, delimitation will be undertaken to reserve seats for
women.
The reservation will be provided for a period of 15 years. However, it shall
continue till such date as determined by a law made by Parliament.
Rotation of Seats: Seats reserved for women will be rotated after each
delimitation, as determined by a law made by Parliament.
What is Background of the Reservation for Women in Politics in India?

The issue of reservation for women in politics can be traced back to the Indian
national movement. In 1931, in their letter to the British Prime Minister, submitting
the official memorandum jointly issued on the status of women in the new Constitution
by three women’s bodies, leaders Begum Shah Nawaz and Sarojini Naidu.
The National Perspective Plan for Women recommended in 1988 that reservation be
provided to women right from the level of the panchayat to that of Parliament.
These recommendations paved the way for the historic enactment of the 73rd
and 74th amendments to the Constitution which mandate all State governments to
reserve one-third of the seats for women in Panchayati Raj Institutions and one-
third of the offices of the chairperson at all levels of the Panchayati Raj
Institutions, and in urban local bodies, respectively. Within these seats, one-third
are reserved for Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe women.
The discussion upon the reservation of women reservation bill is prevalent since the
1996. As the then Government lacked a majority, the Bill could not have been approved.
Earlier Attempts at Reserving Seats for Women:
1996: First Women Reservation Bill was introduced in the Parliament.
1998 – 2003: Government tabled the Bill on 4 occasions but failed.
2009: Government tables the bill amid protests.
2010: The Union Cabinet passes the Bill and RS passes it.
2014: The Bill was expected to be tabled in LS.
The National Policy for the Empowerment of Women (2001) had stated that
reservation will be considered in higher legislative bodies.
In May 2013, the Ministry of Women and Child Development constituted a committee
on the status of women, which recommended ensuring at least 50% reservation of
seats for women in the Local bodies, State Legislative Assemblies, Parliament,
Ministerial levels and all decision‐making bodies of the government.
In 2015, the Report on the Status of Women in India noted that the
representation of women in state assemblies and Parliament continues to be dismal. It
recommended reserving at least 50% seats for women in local bodies, state legislative
assemblies, Parliament, ministerial levels, and all decision-making bodies of the
government.

What Are the Arguments in Support of the Act?

Need: There are 82 women Member of Parliaments in LS (15.2%) and 31 women in

RS(13%). While the number has increased significantly since the 1st Lok Sabha (5%)
but is still far lower than in many countries.
According to recent UN Women data, Rwanda (61%), Cuba (53%), Nicaragua
(52%) are the top three countries in women representation. Bangladesh (21%) and
Pakistan (20%) as well are ahead of India in case of female representation.
Gender Equality:
Women representation in politics is a vital step towards gender equality. However,
according to Global Gender Gap Report 2022, India ranks 48th out of 146 in
 Political Empowerment.
Notwithstanding its rank, its score is quite low at 0.267. Some of the best-
ranking countries in this category score much better. For instance, Iceland is
ranked 1 with a score of 0.874 and Bangladesh is ranked 9 with a score of 0.546.
Historical Underrepresentation:
The number of women MPs has increased from 5% in the first Lok Sabha to 15%
in the 17th Lok Sabha; but the number continues to be quite low.
A 2003 study about the effect of reservation for women in panchayats showed
that women elected under the reservation policy invest more in the public goods
closely linked to women’s concerns.
The Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice (2009)
had noted that reservation of seats for women in local bodies has enabled them
to make meaningful contributions.
Women’s right to Self-representation and Self-determination:
If a group is not represented proportionally in the political system, its ability to
influence policy-making is limited. The Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Discrimination Against Women provides that discrimination against
women must be eliminated in political and public life.
The various surveys do indicate that women representatives from Panchayati Raj
have worked commendably in the development and overall well-being of society in
villages and many of them would definitely want to work on the larger scale,
however, they face various challenges in the political structure prevalent in
society.
Diverse Perspectives:
A more diverse legislature that includes a significant number of women can bring
a broader range of perspectives to the decision-making process. This diversity
can lead to better policy formulation and governance.
Empowerment of Women:
Women's reservation in politics empowers women at various levels. It not only
encourages more women to participate in politics but also inspires women to take
on leadership roles in other sectors.
Promotion of Women's Issues:
Women in politics often prioritize and advocate for issues that directly affect
women, such as gender-based violence, women's health, education, and economic
empowerment. Their presence can lead to the prioritization of these issues in
policy discussions.
Role Models:
Women leaders in politics can serve as role models for young girls, encouraging
them to aspire to leadership positions in various fields. Representation in politics
can break stereotypes and inspire future generations.
Indira Gandhi served as the first and only women Prime Minister of India from
1966 to 1977.
Sushma Swaraj was the second woman external affairs minister of India after
Indira Gandhi.
What are the Arguments Against the Act?

Women are not a homogeneous community like, say like, a caste group. Therefore,
the same arguments made for caste-based reservations cannot be made for women.
Reserving seats for women is opposed by some who claim that doing so violates the
Constitution's guarantee of equality. If there is a reserve, they claim, women won't
be competing on merit, which could decrease their status in society.

What More Can be Done to Ensure Effective Representation of Women?

Strengthen Independent Decision Making:

Establish an independent monitoring system or committees that explicitly
prohibits family members from influencing the decision making process of women
representatives.
It can be implemented by reducing the influence of patriarchal mindset.
Increasing Awareness and Education:
Creating awareness among women about their rights and the importance of their
participation in politics is essential. Educational programs and awareness
campaigns can help to increase women's political participation.
Addressing Gender-based Violence and Harassment:
Gender-based violence and harassment are major obstacles to women's
participation in politics. Addressing these issues through policy and legal
measures can create a safer and more supportive environment for women in
politics.
Reforms in the Electoral Process:
Reforms such as introducing proportional representation and preferential voting
systems can help to increase women's representation in politics by ensuring that
more women get elected.
These are only a few approaches to increase the number of women in Indian
politics. To effect long-lasting change, a multifaceted strategy addressing
multiple challenges is required.