New Delhi:

Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar on Thursday signed the women’s reservation bill as passed by Parliament before it is presented to President Droupadi Murmu for her assent.

The Constitution amendment bill was passed by the Lok Sabha with near unanimity and the Rajya Sabha with unanimity during a special session of Parliament earlier this month.

The bill, which seeks to give 33 per cent reservation to women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, will take some time before being implemented as the next census and the subsequent delimitation (redrawing Lok Sabha and Assembly constituencies) exercise will ascertain the seats being earmarked for women candidates.

“Hon’ble Chairman, Rajya Sabha has signed the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-eighth Amendment) Bill, 2023 as passed by the Houses of Parliament, for being presented to Hon’ble President of India for her assent to the Bill under Article 111 of the Constitution of India,” the Vice President Secretariat said in a post on X.

It also shared a picture of Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal receiving the signed copy of the bill from Dhankhar.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Terming the ‘unanimous’ passage of the women’s quota Bill — titled ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’ — in the Rajya Sabha as a historic moment, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday congratulated fellow countrymen saying that with the passage of the draft legislation, which will enable a fairer representation of ‘Nari Shakti’ in legislative bodies, there will be a new dawn of women’s empowerment in the country.

Prime Minister Modi said by virtue of the women’s quota law, women, who account for one-half of the country’s population and play an “invaluable role” in nation-building, will get their due.

PM Modi took to his official handle on X to post, “A historic moment in our country’s democratic journey! Many congratulations to 140 crore Indians! Heartfelt gratitude to all the MPs of Rajya Sabha for voting for the bill related to Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam. Its unanimous passage is very encouraging. With the passage of this bill, the representation of women power will be strengthened and a new era of their empowerment will begin.”

Had the honor of meeting our dynamic women MPs who are absolutely thrilled at the passage of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam.

It is gladdening to see the torchbearers of change come together to celebrate the very legislation they have championed.

With the passage of the Nari… pic.twitter.com/et8bukQ6Nj

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 21, 2023

“This is not just a law, as it has also given our mothers, sisters and daughters, who play an invaluable role in nation-building, their rights. With this historic step, the voices of crores of women will become louder and their strength, courage and capability will be acknowledged,” PM Modi said in another social media post in Hindi.

हमारे देश की लोकतांत्रिक यात्रा का एक ऐतिहासिक क्षण! 140 करोड़ भारतवासियों को बहुत-बहुत बधाई!

नारी शक्ति वंदन अधिनियम से जुड़े बिल को वोट देने के लिए राज्यसभा के सभी सांसदों का हृदय से आभार। सर्वसम्मति से इसका पास होना बहुत उत्साहित करने वाला है।

इस बिल के पारित होने से जहां…

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 21, 2023

On being mobbed by women legislators after the historic passage of the Bill, PM Modi posted on X, “Had the honour of meeting our dynamic women MPs, who are absolutely thrilled at the passage of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam. It is gladdening to see the torchbearers of change come together to celebrate the very legislation they have championed. With the passage of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, India stands at the cusp of a brighter, more inclusive future with our Nari Shakti being at the core of this transformation.”

A day after it was cleared with near-unanimity in the Lower House, the Rajya Sabha on Thursday passed the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Amendment) Bill, 2023 unanimously, with 214 members voting in support and none against.

The members welcomed the passage of the Bill by thumping their desks.

BJP members raised slogans hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and greeted him after the legislation was passed by the Parliament.

Later, both the Houses of Parliament were adjourned sine die.

The Lok Sabha passed the Bill on Wednesday, with 454 members voting in favour of the legislation and two against it.

Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal gave a brief reply to the day-long debate on the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Amendment) Bill, 2023 in the upper House of Parliament and said it will be implemented after following due process.

Ahead of the voting, PM Modi urged the Rajya Sabha members to pass the Bill unanimously.    

He said the Bill will lead to a new confidence in the people of the country.

“All members and political parties have played a significant role in empowering women and enhancing ‘Nari Shakti’. Let us give the country a strong message,” he said.   

The Rajya Sabha had earlier passed the Women’s Reservation Bill in 2010 during the Congress-led UPA government but it was not taken up in the Lok Sabha and subsequently lapsed in the lower House of Parliament.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Jaipur:

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Thursday said the women’s reservation bill has been welcomed by everyone but is incomplete without OBC reservation and the caste census.

Speaking to reporters after a programme, Mr Gehlot said the bill has been brought for political gain with an eye on upcoming elections under the pressure of the opposition.

“If they (Centre) wanted, they could have done it nine years ago because they had full majority. If you have majority then the work becomes easy. Even then they did not do it.” “Now elections are also coming. It is understood that if the opposition (India alliance) is raising the issue of caste census, then caste census is also important,” Mr Gehlot said.

“The Government of India itself should come forward and do what Sonia Gandhi and many opposition parties felt that you should give reservation to SC/ST/OBC. Make reservation for them also in the 33 percent reservation for women. Then only, all castes, all classes will get a chance to come under it,” the CM said.

Responding to a question on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposed visit on September 25, Mr Gehlot said, “Modi ji, Amit Shah ji should set up a camp in Rajasthan permanently. They have to come again and again.” The Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, which will reserve one-third of seats in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies for women, received the Parliamentary nod on Thursday as the Rajya Sabha voted unanimously in favour of it.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Union Minister Smriti Irani praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the historic day of passing the women’s reservation bill in parliament.

“It’s not only a moment of great joy and jubilation, but it is also a moment of great satisfaction,” she told NDTV.

Ms Irani criticised the previous Congress government for “allowing the bill to lapse”. She said the Congress should “walk the talk”.

The women’s reservation bill sailed through the Upper House this evening, scripting history after decades of roadblocks. It now needs the signature of the President to make 33 per cent reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies official.

“What smacks of absolute arrogance on behalf of the Congress party then was they had absolute majority in the Lok Sabha. If they desired, they could have passed the bill between 2010 and 2014. They allow it to lapse, and they pontificate why not sooner,” Ms Irani said.

The bill received unanimous support from the Rajya Sabha. There were no abstentions and no negative votes. The bill had cleared the Lok Sabha yesterday with the support of 454 MPs. Only Two MPs voted against it.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, present in the Upper House for the voting and passing of the bill, said, “The debates were very successful. In the future as well, this debate will help us all. Thank everyone for their support to the bill. The spirit will give birth to new self-esteem among Indians”.

Once implemented, the number of women members in the Lok Sabha will increase from the current 82 to 181. Besides, 33 per cent seats will be reserved for women in the state assemblies also.

New Delhi:

Coming down heavily on Union Home Minister Amit Shah over his remarks explaining the rationale behind the formation of a Delimitation Committee amid calls from the Opposition to implement the draft women’s quota law at the earliest, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi on Wednesday said his statement was “hypocritical” as a promise made in the BJP’s 2014 manifesto for a Bill that had been in limbo for long, took 9 years to clear the first legislative hurdle in Parliament.

Speaking to ANI after the draft legislation was passed by a brute majority in the Lok Sabha, Ms Chaturvedi said, “His (Amit Shah’s) statement was hypocritical as the BJP made an electoral commitment to women 9 years ago, in its manifesto for the 2014 (Lok Sabha) elections, to bring a women’s reservation law. Despite them (BJP) being the largest single party (in the 2014 and 2019 LS polls) and many in the Opposition raising a chorus for the Bill, it took them 9 years to bring it to fruition. It was hypocritical also because of the (contentious) clause that the implementation of the law is subject to a census and a delimitation exercise. The census has been delayed since 2021.”

Earlier, on Wednesday, Amit Shah, during the debate on the women’s reservation Bill in the Lok Sabha, said the census and delimitation exercises would be conducted after the Lok Sabha polls next year and the women’s quota law will come into effect thereafter.

“The census and delimitation exercises will be conducted soon after the (next general) elections and women will have a greater voice in the Parliament,” the Union Home minister said.

Taking a further swipe at the BJP over the women’s quota Bill, Ms Chaturvedi said, “The census, which has been delayed since 2021, is not likely to happen this year either. My sense is that the delimitation won’t take place before 2029. Things might get a move-on thereafter as a new census is expected in 2031. They are merely hanging the Bill as a carrot to lure women voters. However, the women will see through their ploy and teach them a lesson (in 2024),” the Sena (UBT) MP said.

The women’s reservation Bill, which seeks to provide a 33 per cent quota for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, was introduced in the lower House as part of the legislative agenda of the ongoing Special Session of Parliament, on Wednesday.

The Union Cabinet approved the women’s reservation Bill on Monday, setting the stage for it to be tabled in Parliament.

Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal on Tuesday introduced the Bill in the first sitting of Lok Sabha in the new Parliament building. It was named ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’.

In 2008, the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government tabled the Bill in the Rajya Sabha and it cleared the legislative hurdle in the Upper House in 2010. However, the Bill wasn’t taken up for discussion and passage in the Lower House.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:
Home Minister Amit Shah criticised the Opposition today over the women’s reservation bill for playing politics. Mr Shah said women empowerment is not a political agenda for the BJP, though it may be for the Opposition.

Here are the top quotes of Amit Shah

New Delhi:

Amid a heated debate in Lok Sabha today on the Women’s Reservation Bill, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey alleged that Congress leader Sonia Gandhi had “tried to grab the collar” of a Samajwadi Party member during chaos in the House during a debate on quota in promotions in 2012.

The BJP MP from Godda opened the debate for the ruling party. This sparked a protest from Opposition MPs, who demanded that a woman MP should lead the BJP’s charge. Home Minister Amit Shah intervened to question why a man cannot raise issues concerning women.

Taking a swipe at INDIA bloc, Mr Dubey said Congress MPs had thrashed their allies in the Well of Lok Sabha when the then UPA government had brought a Women’s Reservation Bill to Lok Sabha in 2011. He then mentioned the 2012 discussion on a legislation to implement reservation in promotions.

“When I talk about the Bill to bring reservation in promotion, all those in these benches will be up on their feet. (Congress minister) V Narayanasamy was presenting the Bill. Samajwadi Party’s Yashvir Singh was a Scheduled Caste MP; these people talk about Scheduled Castes and Tribes. Yashvir Singh had snatched the papers from Mr Narayanasamy,” he said.

“In this Lok Sabha, Sonia Gandhi had then tried to grab his (Yashvir Singh) collar. I had then told her, ‘you are not the dictator here, you are not the queen, you cannot fight here’,” Mr Dubey added. “Mulayam Singh Yadav had then said that his party’s MPs would not have been saved if the BJP did not intervene. You tried to murder MPs. Now you have come together in an alliance,” he said.

The constitutional amendment Bill, tabled in Lok Sabha Tuesday, aims to provide 33% reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies.

What Happened In 2012?
News reports from 2012 describe Ms Gandhi’s intervention during the chaos in Lok Sabha. She had reportedly held Yashvir Singh and asked “what are you doing” after he snatched the papers from Mr Narayanasamy, who later went on to serve as Puducherry Governor. The news reports say she had tried to take the papers from Mr Singh’s hands, but could not. Late Mulayam Singh Yadav, then Samajwadi Party chief, had condemned the “attack on our MPs”. 

BJP Credits Left Leader
“The two women who spoke in favour of the women reservation Bill the most were Bengal’s Geeta Mukherjee and BJP’s Sushma Swaraj. We would not see this date without them. But Sonia ji did not mention them. What kind of politics is this?,” Mr Dubey asked. Ms Mukerjee was CPI’s seven-time MP from Bengal’s Panskura between 1980 and 2000. 

Throwback To Sharad Yadav’s “Short Hair” Remark
Mr Dubey referred to a remark by veteran politician late Sharad Yadav on the women reservation Bill that had sparked a huge row. The women reservation Bill was first introduced in Parliament by the HD Devegowda government in 1996. The next year, during a discussion on the legislation, Mr Yadav opposed the move. During his speech, he had remarked that the Bill would empower only “women with short hair” – a euphemism for educated and modern women. The BJP MP’s remarks had sparked a row, forcing him to eventually apologise. 

Mumbai:

The Nationalist Congress Party on Sunday proposed the passing of the landmark women’s reservation bill at an all-party meeting held on the eve of the special session of Parliament, party leader Praful Patel said.

“In the all-party meeting convened by the government on the eve of the Parliament session, I have put forward a proposal of the passing of the landmark women’s reservation bill to commemorate 75 years of our Independence and opening of the New Parliament Building,” Patel, the working president of NCP and loyalist of Ajit Pawar, posted on X.

“This will be a true celebration and representation for 50 per cent of our population waiting for their recognition and respect in our society,” he added.

At the meeting, several political parties, including from the ruling NDA and the opposition INDIA bloc, made a strong pitch for the passage of the women’s reservation bill during the five-day session beginning Monday.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)