LIVE | Day 2 in Parliament: Unanimously clear women reservation bill, PM tells Rajya Sabha
Bill gets the name Naari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam; bill proposes 33% quota for women for 15 years
The government on Tuesday (September 19) introduced a constitutional amendment bill to reserve one-third of seats in Lok Sabha and state assemblies for women, reviving a bill pending for 27 years for want of consensus among parties.
Making it the first bill to be introduced in the new Parliament building, the government said it will enable greater participation of women in policy-making at the state and national levels and help achieve the goal of making India a developed country by 2047. The bill has been named Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam.
With several parties parties pushing for reservation of women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies, the bill is likely to see a smooth passage this time, unlike the earlier instances when several regional parties had opposed it. However, its implementation may still take some time and is unlikely to be in force for the next Lok Sabha elections in 2024 as the reservation will come into effect only after a delimitation exercise is completed.
Speaking in the Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the Union Cabinet approved the bill on Monday and that the government wants more and more women to join the development process of the country. The world has recognised the women-led development process in the country and is witnessing contribution made by Indian women in different aspects of life from sports to startups, the prime minister said.
In the Rajya Sabha, Modi appealed to members to unanimously approve the women's reservation bill - Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam - when it comes to the Upper House after being passed by Lok Sabha. Speaking during the first sitting of Rajya Sabha in the new Parliament building, Modi said the bill would be taken up in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday. "When the bill comes before you, I urge Rajya Sabha members to approve it unanimously," Modi said.
Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal introduced the Constitutional Amendment bill, Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, to reserve one-third of the seats in Lok Sabha and state assemblies for women earlier in the day.
The special session commenced on Monday (September 18) amid an intense buzz on whether the government will have some surprise item up its sleeve. What followed was an impassioned speech by Prime Modi, who recalled key pieces of legislation passed in the existing Parliament House.
Live Updates
- 19 Sept 2023 11:09 AM IST
BRS MLC K Kavitha wary of Women’s Reservation Bill contents
BRS MLC K Kavitha has hailed the reported decision of the Union Cabinet to approve the Women’s Reservation Bill but expressed apprehension on the contents of the Bill.
She said there was no official communication from the central government and “everybody had to learn of this development through the media”.
Minister of State Prahlad Singh Patel had on Monday posted on social media platform X that the Cabinet has approved the women's reservation bill but deleted the post within an hour.
While there was no official word on what transpired in the Cabinet meeting, which lasted for more than 90 minutes on Monday evening, speculations were rife that it approved the women’s reservation bill.
“I am elated, I am very happy and I am on cloud nine dancing away but also worried a little bit,” Kavita said on Monday, welcoming the Cabinet’s reported decision, but was cautious as to what would be the format of the bill or will it be the same one passed in the Rajya Sabha in 2008 amid other doubts.
She maintained that there was no clarity on when this Bill will be introduced in Parliament, or a completely different Bill will be introduced and what its objectives would be.
Kavitha has been a prominent voice in raising the demand for the Women’s Reservation Bill.
Earlier this month, the BRS leader made an appeal to 47 political parties, including BJP and Congress, to unite and pass the long-awaited bill in the special session of Parliament.
In March, Kavitha sat on a hunger strike in New Delhi demanding the tabling and passing of the bill, which seeks to reserve 33 per cent of seats in the Lok Sabha and state Legislative Assemblies for women. (PTI)
- 19 Sept 2023 11:06 AM IST
New building named Parliament House of India
The new Parliament building has been designated as the Parliament House of India, a Lok Sabha Secretariat notification has said.
“The Speaker, Lok Sabha is pleased to notify the new building of Parliament situated in the precincts of the Parliament House on Plot Number 118, New Delhi, east of the existing Parliament House with Raisina road to the south and Red Cross road to the north, to be, hereon, designated as the Parliament House of India," said the notification issued on Monday. (PTI)
