Former India captain Mithali Raj has joined the bandwagon of celebrities praising the government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for passing the Women's Reservation Bill in the Parliament on Monday.
The government on Tuesday introduced a constitutional amendment bill reserving 33 per cent seats for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, reviving a bill pending for 27 years and blending history, politics and societal imperatives on the first day in the new Parliament building.
The women’s reservation bill, named Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam and introduced in the Lower House by Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, will come into effect only after a delimitation exercise is completed and is therefore unlikely to be in force during the next Lok Sabha elections in 2024.
It was the first bill to be introduced in the new Parliament building in New Delhi.
"I congratulate our Prime Minister and our government on the Women's Reservation Bill...
"With 33 per cent (reservation), the participation of women in governance will increase... It is a great move... We are all very happy," Raj told ANI.
"This bill is going to be passed... We felt happy that prominent athletes were called (on this day)... The women's reservation is important for women's empowerment," said former Rajya Sabha MP Mary Kom.
"As a woman of India, getting to witness something like this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I am grateful to PM Modi for initiating a discussion on such important issues," said former Indian athlete Anju Bobby George.
Women's Reservation Bill
Pending since 1996 when the first bill on the matter was introduced but could not be passed due to lack of political consensus -- several regional parties demanded ‘quota within quota’ -- it is likely to see smooth passage this time with most parties pushing for guaranteeing women one-third representation in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies.
However, provisions in the Constitution (128th Amendment) Bill make it clear the reservation will come into effect only after the delimitation exercise, or the redrawing of constituencies, taking into account data of the census conducted after the bill becomes a law.
