TMC's Derek O'Brien pushes for Women's Reservation Bill in Rajya Sabha

TMC has urged the government to introduce the Bill to amend the Constitution to allow 33% of the seats of Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and state Assemblies to women

The Trinamool Congress has been pushing to bring a motion in Rajya Sabha in the last week of the Budget Session on the long-pending Women's Reservation Bill that provides for 33% reservation for women in Parliament and State Assemblies.

Trinamool Rajya Sabha floor leader Derek O'Brien has submitted a notice under Rule 168 of the Rules of Procedures and Conduct of Business in Rajya Sabha seeking to table a motion in Rajya Sabha urging the government to introduce the Bill to amend the Constitution to allow 33% of the seats of Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and state Assemblies to be reserved for women.

According to the text of the motion, it also urges the government to "create a mechanism by which the Government can investigate the barriers of entry to women in electoral politics" and "look at ways to encourage more women to participate in electoral politics".

Asked about the urgency of bringing the motion, O’Brien noted that women account for Trinamool Congress’ 34% of its MPs. “Which party has 34% women MPs? Action needed. Not words,” he told DH.

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The motion noted that India has slipped 28 places to rank 140th among 156 countries in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2021 majorly on account of the significant decline in the share of women among ministers, which halved, from 23% in 2019 to 9.1% in 2021 and share currently stands at 14%.

"India’s rank has steadily deteriorated over the years in Inter-Parliamentary Union’s Women in National Parliaments Rankings. In 1998, India ranked 95th. As of March 2022, India ranks 144th out of 184 countries. There are 15% women MPs in the 17th Lok Sabha and 12.2% women MPs in the Rajya Sabha. This is lower than the global average of 25.5%. Only 8% of the total MLAs are women across all States in India," it said.

The motion also referred to the commitment made by the Narendra Modi government to provide 33% reservation to women in Parliament and Assemblies.

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The Women’s Reservation Bill was introduced multiple times since 1996 but failed to become the law of the land. The Bill was first introduced in Lok Sabha on 12 September 1996 by the United Front government led by HD Deve Gowda and similar versions of the bill were introduced later in 1998, 1999, and 2008.

The Bill introduced in Rajya Sabha on 6 May 2008 was passed by the Upper House on 9 March 2010. Between 8 May 2008 and 17 December 2009, the Bill was scrutinised by a Parliamentary Standing Committee.

The Bill passed by the Rajya Sabha was transmitted to the Lok Sabha but the government could not pass it before the dissolution of the Lower House in 2014. As the Bill could not be passed by the Lok Sabha, it now stands lapsed.

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