House argues on women’s quota, so do activists

But the EC’s suggestion drew fire from some quarters in Parliament, who on Wednesday questioned the authority of the Commission to suggest alternatives to a bill which is pending in the House.

The CPI(M) took the lead in attacking the what it called the Commission’s intervention on an issue which was pending before the House. Intervening during the zero hour CPM member V Radhakrishnan said the EC had gone beyond its purview by making its own proposals and asking the political parties to give their views on women’s reservation.

The argument of the CPM is that only Parliament, and not any other body, has the right to suggest Amendments to legislation and that the EC should stick to its Constitutional duty of conducting elections.

This view is also held by other political parties, like the MDMK, whose leader Vaiko also chastised the Commission for overstepping its bounds on the women’s reservation issue.

But Trinamool Congress member Krishna Bose disagreed. With the women’s reservation bill stuck in Parliament and going nowhere for nearly four years now, Bose said the EC’s proposal was a positive one since political parties should mandatorily nominate more women candidates. This would require only a simple amendment to the Representation of the People Act, 1951, instead of the more tortuous constitutional amendment route.

The bill, pending in the House, seeks to reserve 33 percent seats for women in Parliament and the state assemblies. It has been vehemently opposed by some political parties wanting to reduce the reserved quota, and by others wanting to have reservation within the quota for women belonging to scheduled caste and OBCs.

Welcoming the EC’s proposals, the Janata Dal (United) said the suggestions were both "practical and implementable". While they feel it would be next to impossible to pass a constitutional amendment reserving 33 per cent seats for women, empowering the EC to withhold recognition from parties which do not give adequate representation to women, may be a more workable option.

The EC proposals have also divided women’s rights activists. Brinda Karat of the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) has rejected the EC’s suggestion that political parties reach a consensus on how many seats should be reserved for women.

But another women’s rights advocate, Madhu Kishwar has welcomed the EC’s initiative saying it would break the deadlock on the women’s reservation bill. Kishwar sees it as a "sign of hope" for Indian democracy that an independent constitutional body is helping to resolve a conflict arising from the apathy of the entire political establishment to women’s empowerment.

The Forum for Democratic Reforms, of which Kishwar is a member, has urged political parties to to respond favourably to the EC’s suggestions which would come up for discussion at an all party meeting on electoral reforms to be held here on April 29.