- The Indian Government has introduced the 128th Constitutional Amendment Bill, 2023, which proposes to reserve 33% of seats for women in Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies.
Features of the Bill:-
- One-third of the total number of seats in Lok Sabha and State Assemblies will be reserved for women.
- The reservation applies to seats reserved for Scheduled Caste (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) as well.
- The provisions will come into effect after a delimitation exercise is conducted.
- For delimitation Articles 82 and 170(3) of the Constitution would have to be amended.
- Article 82 provides for readjustment of the constituencies of both Lok Sabha and State Assemblies after every Census.
- Article 170(3) deals with composition of the Legislative Assemblies.
Previous Amendments:-
- The 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments mandated one-third reservation for women in rural and local bodies.
- They took effect on April 24, 1993, and June 1, 1993, respectively.
- These amendments established local self-governance in rural and urban areas as well as mandated one-third reservation for women.
Source - The Hindu