Special Parliament session on women’s reservation: Expect fireworks

The Budget Session of Parliament will resume on April 16 for a special session that is expected to trigger political fireworks. At the centre of the brewing controversy are proposed amendments linked to the Women’s Reservation Bill— Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam — related to the delimitation exercise and a possible “proportionate” increase of Lok Sabha seats in every state based on their current strength.

Calling for wider consultations on a “sensitive” issue like delimitation, the Congress on Friday accused the Narendra Modi-led Centre of convening the “special session” to push key legislations with an eye on electoral gains, especially in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, terming the move a “gross violation” of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC). While explicitly backing 33% reservation for women, Opposition parties have demanded an all-party meeting after the elections to deliberate on the issue before introducing it in Parliament.

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“Where is the urgency, it was only a matter of 15 more days,” Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said, quoting letters by party president Mallikarjun Kharge to the government recommending such a session after the elections.

BJP leaders maintain that it is fulfilling its promise to enhance women’s representation, and that the legislative process falls within its mandate.

As reported by The Statesman on 26 March, the Narendra Modi government is planning to fast-track the implementation of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam to enable 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha by the 2029 general elections. While the aim is to transform women’s political representation into an immediate reality, however, this would also require delinking the delimitation exercise from the next Census scheduled in 2027.

Under the proposed model, the Lok Sabha’s strength would increase by 50%, from 543 to around 816 seats. The additional 273 seats would be reserved for women, ensuring the one-third quota without displacing existing male MPs. To enable this the government wants to use 2011 Census data instead of waiting for updated population figures. The 2023 law currently ties the implementation of women’s reservation to the 2027 Census and a subsequent delimitation exercise

A key concern for Opposition parties is the potential impact of delimitation.

They fear that even a proportional increase in seats could disadvantage southern and smaller states. Ramesh said no formal proposal has been shared but warned that “smaller states and those in the South, Northeast and West could suffer massively,” altering the balance of representation.

The government, however, says that proportional distribution of seats among states will address all concerns, especially of southern states. For instance, Uttar Pradesh’s seats could rise from 80 to around 120, Tamil Nadu’s may increase from 39 to about 60 and Kerala’s from 20 to 30 seats.

However, opposition leaders point that disparities would widen — the gap between Uttar Pradesh and Kerala, which currently 60 seats (80 vs 20), could grow to 90 seats (120 vs 30) if this formula is applied

Meanwhile, Kharge and Rahul Gandhi are expected to meet party MPs and other Opposition figures ahead of the session to formulate the strategy for the special session.