Women MPs on Tuesday welcomed the Centre's plans to bring legislations to implement the women's reservation law
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NEW DELHI — Women MPs on Tuesday welcomed the Centre's plans to bring legislations to implement the women's reservation law during the ongoing Budget session of Parliament, saying the move will further strengthen women's participation in governance.
JD(U) MP Lovely Anand termed it a "welcome step" and said greater participation of women in politics will accelerate the country's progress.
"This is a very welcome and commendable step. Only when women come forward, will the country progress. Men and women are like the two wheels of a vehicle. Both the prime minister and the Bihar chief minister have worked towards empowering women," she told reporters inside Parliament House complex.
"Today, women are working in every field -- from space to aviation to defence. When women enter mainstream politics in large numbers, the country will progress even faster. Both of them have done justice to half the population, and for this I thank them," she said.
BJP MP Kamaljeet Sehrawat said the passage of the women's reservation law fulfilled a long-standing promise made to "half the population" of the country by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"Many people in this country have spoken about women, but the effort to bring the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam and the success in doing so goes to the prime minister," Sehrawat said.
"Bringing the reservation bill is a promise made by the prime minister to half the population of the country, and that half of the population trusts him.
"The steps taken over the past 11 years have been aimed at empowering this half of the population socially and economically. This is the prime minister's effort, and I thank him for it," she said, adding that the move will boost women's role in policymaking.
Samajwadi Party MP Iqra Hasan also welcomed the initiative but said clarity is needed on how the reservation will be implemented.
The government has already taken credit for the women's reservation bill earlier. Now, it is important to see how they bring arrangements for its implementation, Hasan said.
"It is very important that there is reservation for women in our country, but how it will be implemented, what the criteria for reservation will be - all this needs to be seen, she said.
"However, we are happy with this initiative of the government," the SP MP told reporters.
The government is "willing" to bring two bills in the ongoing Budget session of Parliament to ensure that the women's reservation law is implemented before the completion of the delimitation exercise for Lok Sabha and assembly constituencies, sources said on Monday.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah held separate meetings with NDA and non-Congress opposition parties' floor leaders to arrive at a consensus. If the consensus is reached, the two bills could be brought as early as this week, the sources said.
The provision to provide 33 per cent reservation to women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies was brought by amending the Constitution, but it will come into effect after the completion of the delimitation exercise.
According to the broad contours available, the number of Lok Sabha seats would be increased from the present 543 to 816, with 273 seats reserved for women.
In September 2023, President Droupadi Murmu gave her assent to the Nari Shakti Vandan Bill. The law is officially known as the Constitution (106th Amendment) Act.