The Union government is considering dethroning the Nari Shakti Vandhan Adhinyam Act or the Constitution (Amendment) Act No. 128, which reserves one-third of seats for women in national and state legislatures, from the requirement that it comes into effect after delimitation and census, and implement it before the 2027 Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand assembly elections, people familiar with the matter said.
A government employee said that it was being explored whether a lottery system could be implemented to determine which third of electoral districts should be allocated to women. The official added that Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju reached out to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge to know his party’s opinion on the issue.
Regarding whether the government will present an amendment in the current budget session, the official said that such a decision would be the responsibility of the opposition. “We are trying to reach a consensus.”
Opposition parties, including the Congress, Trinamool Congress and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, have proposed separating the reservation process from delimitation and census.
They demanded implementation of the law from the 2029 Lok Sabha elections. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi questioned the government’s intention and claimed that the delay in implementing reservation was against its purpose.
Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal had argued that implementing reservation after the demarcation process will make it foolproof, and no one can challenge the process in the court of law.
The Nari Shakti Vandhan Adhinyam Act was passed in Parliament in September 2023 during a special session. This was the first legislation to be passed in the new Parliament building.
