Reason and ruse: Lessons from a failed bill

The Union government likely knew the fate of the legislation package it introduced, purportedly to implement the Women’s Reservation Bill of 2023, even before it convened a special parliamentary session to pass it. The bills, including one on a Constitutional amendment, lacked the requisite support in the Lok Sabha as most Opposition parties were against the linking of women’s reservation with the population census and delimitation of constituencies. The Bill was defeated as it failed to secure a two-thirds majority, and would be remembered as a farcical exercise aimed at gaining political advantage from the optics surrounding women’s reservation, ahead of Assembly elections in two states. Prime Minister Narendra Modi indicated the government’s thinking when he said the Opposition parties would not be forgiven by women in the country if they defeated the Bill.

The debate in the House provided no credible justification for the controversial provisions that would increase the number of Lok Sabha seats as part of the proposed delimitation exercise. The uneven increase in the number of seats would have diminished the political relevance of South Indian states and given the Northern states an undue advantage. Home Minister Amit Shah’s explanations did not assuage these concerns. The 50% increase in seats that he proposed would actually have worsened the existing imbalance between states. Retaining the percentage of seats in the Lok Sabha does not help when the gap in absolute numbers widens. In a first-past-the-post system, political and legislative power is measured by the absolute number of seats, not percentages. Furthermore, the Bill provided no clarity about some of the implications of delimitation, as envisioned by the government.

The government’s plan, if successful, would have dealt a serious blow to the country’s federal balance, allowing states lagging in development to dominate states that promoted and efficiently implemented national policies and made stronger contributions to the country’s growth. It would have disrupted India’s democratic structures, ironically, in the name of promoting a powerful democratic idea – increasing women’s representation in parliament. What was defeated on Friday was an attempt to legitimise a dangerous and iniquitous delimitation of constituencies, pitched as a principled move to ensure women’s reservation. Unfortunately, a cause of such importance was used to push a political agenda. While this failed attempt should serve as a warning, the nation should guard against the proposal’s return in other forms.