From history to the road ahead: Top 10 reads on the women’s reservation Bill

The Indian Express provided extensive coverage of the Bill — from historical perspectives that have shaped the legilsation to controversies surrounding it. Here are our top 10 must-reads about the women’s reservation Bill:

1. 01

   Women's quota Bill: Caste groups fragmented, BJP chipping away at OBC vote, Mandal parties show shift

   The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Amendment) Bill, 2023, is historic in another sense- it marks the first time since 1996, when a Bill to reserve seats for women was first introduced, that ‘social justice’ parties like the Samajwadi Party have cautiously approved of it.

   We take a look at how the caste-centered Mandal politics has moved towards a broader symbolic politics, and how the Bharatiya Janata Party is chipping away at the OBC vote.

2. 02

   Women’s reservation: What is the road ahead, before it can be implemented

   How is this Bill different from the ones that preceded it? What does the road ahead look like for women's representation in legislative bodies? How will the reserved seats be identified?

   Find out the answer to these questions, and more, in our deep dive on the Bill.

3. 03

   ‘There was broad consensus in 1996 on women’s quota… it could have passed. But govt fell’: Former law minister behind first Bill

   "The Bill wasn’t introduced suddenly, but was a culmination of discussions that went on for years, leading to an apparent consensus in 1996. And it could have been passed (then)... This (United) Front, first under Deve Gowda and then under I K Gujral, lasted a short period, and then the whole thing collapsed. Thereafter, the Bill hasn’t become a main plank in the political discourse. Some half-hearted attempts were made to pass it. These attempts should have been made by a ruling consensus.

   Former Union law minister Ramakant Khalap — who was then in the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) and is now in the Congress — had first introduced the women's reservation Bill in the Lok Sabha in 1996 when the United Front coalition government was in power. He speaks to The Indian Express about the Bill, and the discourse that accompanied it back then.

4. 04

   Seeds for women's reservation in Rajiv Gandhi and P V Narasimha Rao governments

   Since the mid-90s, almost every government has tried to push through the legislation to provide reservation to women in Parliament and Assemblies. We take a closer look at the history, and explain how the seeds for this Bill were sown in the governments led by Rajiv Gandhi and P V Narasimha Rao.

5. 05

   Women’s Bill: Is just fielding more enough? A Congress lesson from UP, 2022

   Apart from detailed pieces dealing with history, we also take a look at the recent past. In the last Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh in 2022, the Congress, which has supported the Bill in the Parliament, put aside 40 per cent tickets for women as part of its high-decibel ‘Ladki hun, ladh sakti hun’ campaign led by party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. This meant that the the party fielded 155 women for the 399 (out of 403) seats it contested, many of whom were candidates with little political presence.

   The result? Only two Congress candidates won overall, among them Aradhna Mishra, the daughter of veteran Congress leader Pramod Tiwari. Read to know why this happened.

6. 06

   Backdrop to women’s quota: Only 9% of candidates in 2019 LS polls were women

   Though the number of women candidates and winners has been rising since the late ’90s, at their highest in 2019, only 78 women won in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

   Check out our data story to understand how the numbers reflect the on-ground reality of women in politics.

7. 07

   With women’s quota Bill, BJP playbook in focus: How party is using welfarism and gender politics

   The Narendra Modi-led government’s decision of clearing the women's quota Bill ahead of Assembly elections in five states this year and the Lok Sabha polls next year is the latest addition to its string of social welfare measures catering to women, and framing it in terms of empowerment and representation.

   We analyse how a steady uptick in women voters brought about grassroots changes for the ruling party.

8. 08

   Opinion | Women’s reservation Bill – imperfect but important

   Find out why Angellica Aribam, founder of the Femme First Foundation, called the women's reservation Bill "imperfect, but important": "The women of this country have waited for 27 years to see this Bill enacted. Even though the current Bill is far from perfect, we can’t afford to wait another two decades. Let’s welcome the government’s initiative to make women’s reservation a reality. There are miles to go in achieving gender parity in politics and this is just the beginning."

9. 09

   Opinion | Will reservation really help Indian women?

   In this opinion piece, Faizan Mustafa asks whether the Bill will "really empower women", and whether it will "really empower women". "The experience of reservation in panchayats and local urban bodies tells us that a new designation was invented by the powerful men in the villages — Pradhan Pati (husband of a woman Pradhan)... It is heartening to note that in the subsequent decades, women Pradhans started asserting their independence and their performance has been simply outstanding... Let us accept that women indeed make better leaders."

10. 10

    Opinion | Women’s reservation Bill – finally, a House of equality

    "The mere candidacy of women will ensure that they step out of their households and break through the barriers of entry into politics. This Bill will not only alter the semantics of parliamentary democracy, but its very contours. As the mother of democracy, India will finally pay respect to and give the rightful place to her daughters in the hallowed halls of the new Parliament": Aditi Narayani Paswan writes how the women's quota Bill could finally ensure equality in the Parliament.