The women's reservation bill   The women's reservation bill reserving one-third seats for women in Parliament and state legislatures passed in Rajya Sabha on March 9, 2010. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh described in the Rajya Sabha a "historic step forward toward emancipation of Indian womanhood". The bill now goes to the Lok Sabha, where it is likely to pass. But the  government was taken aback by the unprecedented bedlam over the bill in the Rajya Sabha. The government has promised to hold an all-party meeting before it takes the legislation to the Lok Sabha. The main political opponents of the bill--Mulayam Singh Yadav, Lalu Prasad and Janata Dal (United) leader Sharad Yadav--say the bill will help the rich and privileged and not the poor disadvantaged.   The supporters of the bill -Congress, BJP, CPM and others  say the bill--formally called the 108th Constitution Amendment Bill--is necessary to increase the representation of women in Parliament, which stands at just 10 per cent even after 15 elections.

PM Manmohan Singh described in the Rajya Sabha a "historic step forward toward emancipation of Indian womanhood".

Background to the Women’s Reservation Bill    In 1974, the Report of the Committee on Status of Women highlighted the low number of women in political bodies and recommended that seats be reserved for women in panchayats and municipal bodies. The National Perspective Plan for Women (1988) recommended a quota of 30% in panchayats, municipalities and parties. Representation for women in panchayats  and Municipalities was done through the 73rd and 74th Amendments passed in 1993.    In 1996 during the United Front government, the first move for a women’s quota in Lok Sabha and state assemblies was made but it ran into resistance from the OBC chieftains, Mulayam Singh Yadav and Lalu Prasad. Subsequent attempts to introduce the Constitution Amendment bill in 1998 and 1999 failed, again because of OBC -led resistance. In 2008, UPA- I introduced the bill in the Rajya Sabha despite strong protests from Lalu Prasad, then an important ally of the Congress Party.    Highlights of the Women’s Reservation Bill   The women's reservation bill seeks to reserve one-third of all seats for women in the Lok Sabha and in the state legislative assemblies. The allocation of reserved seats is to be determined by an authority to be designated by Parliament. One-third of the total number of seats reserved for Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) in the Lok Sabha and the legislative assemblies will also be reserved for SC/ST women. Reservation for women will cease 15 years after the commencement of the Act.   Reserved seats will be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in the state or union territory. If a state or union territory has only one seat in the Lok Sabha, that seat will be reserved for women in the first general election of every cycle of three elections . If there are two seats, each will be reserved once in a cycle of three elections. Similar rules apply for seats reserved for SC/STs. Of the two seats in the Lok Sabha reserved for Anglo-Indians , one will be reserved for women in each of the two elections in a cycle of three elections.  A total of 181 seats will be reserved for women.     Benefits of the Women’s Reservation Bill    The women's reservation bill aims to bring about gender equality in Parliament and state legislatures.  Still the percentage of women in the Lok Sabha found between 7% and 11% after 63 years of Independence, In state assemblies, too, representation of women is abysmally low. Hence effective  measures are needed to bring women (nearly 50% of the population) at par with men in the Lok Sabha and assemblies. The bill if passed will create an army of a new breed of women political activists.   Women reservation in other countries   Rwanda is the only country in the world with more women (56%) than men in their national legislative body through the quota system. Sweden follows with 47%, South Africa (45%), Iceland (43%), Argentina (42%), the Netherlands (41%) and Norway and Senegal with 40%. In Pakistan, the percentage of women in the National Assembly has reached 22% , in Nepal, the percentage of women members is 33% and in  Bangladesh, 45 seats out of the total of 345 are reserved for women. China has 21% women in the National People’s Congress without any quota policy.   Opposition of the Women’s Reservation Bill   The political parties as  SP, RJD  leaders like Mulayam Singh Yadav and Lalu Prasad oppose the bill openly. They demand for a sub-quota for OBC and Muslim women.    Critics have highlighted many flaws of the Bill. Rotating constituencies mean women cannot nurse a constituency. Reservations do not extend to the Rajya Sabha, creating a Parliamentary anomaly. There is no female sub-quota within existing quotas. Reservations could mean more upper-caste women MPs at the expense of backward castes. Reservations for 60 years for Dalits and tribals have failed to end  discrimination. They have merely created a creamy layer of the formerly unprivileged, leaving others barely better off.    The Indian Constitution  does not allow reservation on communal lines, it allows electoral reservation only for SC/ST. OBCs have reservation in education and jobs, but no quota in legislatures..

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