The Hindu : Front Page : Women’s Bill to be tabled today in Rajya Sabha

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Tuesday, May 06, 2008
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Women’s Bill to be tabled today in Rajya Sabha

Aarti Dhar

Cabinet nod at emergency meeting

NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Monday approved for introduction in the Rajya Sabha the contentious Women’s Reservation Bill. The nod came at an emergency meeting convened by the Prime Minister at his residence late in the evening and the Bill will be tabled on Tuesday.

The understanding is that the proposed legislation will be introduced and referred to the Standing Committee, before which political parties can raise their objections. Railway Minister and Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Lalu Prasad is reported to have said his party had a point of view that needed to be accommodated and other alternatives could be looked into. However, he was reportedly told that the Bill — in its original form — was only being introduced as it was the commitment of the United Progressive Alliance in the Common Minimum Programme, and all issues could be raised before the Standing Committee.

The Bill was originally drafted and introduced in Parliament in September 1996 when H.D. Deve Gowda was Prime Minister in the United Front government.

Two options

The Law Ministry has prepared two drafts, the first envisaging reservation of 33.3 per cent seats for women within the existing strength of Parliament and Assemblies and the second calling for increasing their strength by 33.3 per cent. Under the second option, the strength of the 545-member Lok Sabha increases to 900.

An alternative was also suggested by the Election Commission, making it mandatory for parties to reserve seats for women in each State.

This would involve amendment to the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and the parties could lose recognition if they failed to provide reservation. The other options suggested were rotation and sharing of seats, which were, however, not acceptable to women’s groups.

The Bill, introduced in 1996, was sent to a joint Parliamentary Committee headed by Left MP Geeta Mukherjee but it lapsed when the United Front government fell. When it was again introduced in 1999 by the then Law Minister, Ram Jethmalani, during the NDA regime, the Bill was snatched from his hands and torn up with the Samajwadi Party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal, the Lok Jan Shakti Party and the Janata Dal (United) opposing the proposed legislation and insisting on reservation within reservation from the minorities and backward classes.

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