Policy brief series: No.

3; 2008 July

CLRA Policy Brief for Parliamentarians

Women’s Reservation
A Long Delayed and a Much Needed Step
“Achieving the goal of equal participation of women and men in decision making will provide a balance that more
accurately reflects the composition of society and is needed in order to strengthen democracy and promote its proper
functioning… Without the active participation of women and the incorporation of women's perspectives at all
levels of decision-making, the goals of equality, development and peace cannot be achieved.”
- Fourth World Conference on Women, Beijing, 1995: Article 181

Introduction - Women represent half of the population of a

country and therefore have the right to half of the
Women represent more than half of the world's seats, since decisions made in parliament have a
population and just less than half of the global direct impact on their lives.
electorate. Nevertheless, women constitute a
marginal proportion of representatives in the world's - Women have different social and biological
legislative bodies. In 2008, the average rate of female experiences which should be represented in
representation in national parliaments stands at a institutions of governance.
meagre 18 per cent. - Women and men have partly conflicting
India has of yet managed notably limited success interests.
in rectifying these imbalances, with women currently - Women in positions of power can inspire more
holding only 8 per cent of parliamentary seats. women to place themselves in influential and
Although India was one of the first democratic decision-making roles.
nations to grant women the vote, women are neither
represented in the legislative spaces nor contributing Implications of the Bill
towards the formation of national laws. The main provisions of the Bill, as introduced in
After twelve years of the Women's Reservation the Rajya Sabha in May 2008, are:
Bill lying in limbo amid intermittent and (1) Not less than one-third of seats to be reserved in
embarrassingly hot-headed scenes in the House, it the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies
was finally introduced in the Rajya Sabha during the for women;
last day of the Budget Session, 2008. As it is a
Constitutional Amendment Bill, it must now acquire (2) One-third of the total number of seats reserved
a two-thirds majority to be passed in the Parliament. under clause (2) of article 330 (the existing quota
for Schedule Castes and Scheduled Tribes) to be
CLRA presents this policy brief for reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled
parliamentarians to encourage them to take action at a Castes or the Scheduled Tribes;
critical juncture for India's institutions of governance,
interest groups and the male and female electorate. (3) Reservation of seats to cease to exist or expire after
Once again, parliamentarians have the opportunity to 15 years of the commencement of the
enhance women's representation, strengthen constitutional amendment;
democratic governance and enable access to decision (4) To select women candidates through a system of
making bodies for India's most sizeable and rotation, by which one third of the total number of
potentially must subjugated minority. For these constituencies to be reserved for women
reasons, it is essential that the Bill gets passed in the candidates will be determined through a draw of
next session of Parliament, with the political will for lots;
its implementation during and after the 2009 general
(5) To consider extending the reservation to Rajya
election.
Sabha and the Legislative Councils of States,
The arguments in favour of reserved representation without making any definite provisions within
can be simply delineated: the scope of the current Bill.

CLRA Policy Brief for Parliamentarians 1

Women's Rights and Social Development realms, which will in turn have implications for
“I measure the progress of a community by the degree of progress India's performance against all milestones for social
which women have achieved.” progress.
- B.R. Ambedkar
Reservation of seats is a basic, consistent and
Taking measures to enhance the status and logical step towards both women's emancipation and
visibility of women is critical for sustainable progress inclusive development - particularly for a government
against the range of human development indicators, which promised that the “equal access to participation
both because women are particularly vulnerable to and decision making of women in the social, political
social and economic marginalisation when resources and economic life of the nation” would be at the heart
are scarce, and because women are critical agents in the of its agenda (National Policy for the Empowerment of
development processes. According to various Women, 2001).
international reports, development in India is being
severely hampered by the breadth of the gender gap and A Meaningful Democracy
limited female participation in traditionally male “The concept of democracy will only assume true and dynamic
dominated institutions and social strata (See box no. 1). significance when political parties and national legislatures are decided
upon jointly by men and women in equitable regard for the interests and
aptitudes of both halves of the population.”
Box no.1: India and the Gender Gap - Inter-Parliamentary Union, 1994
The World Economic Forum's annual Gender Gap Report
(2007) affirmed that there are just six countries - Iran, Bahrain,
Whilst there is no universally accepted definition
Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Yemen - performing worse of 'democracy', any functional analysis must include
against economic parameters, with women constituting a two fundamental principals: all members of the
mere 3 per cent of legislators, senior officials and managers society must have equal access to power, and all
and making up 90 per cent of informal workers in the
members must enjoy universally recognised
economy. Against other major indicators, there is also
immense cause for concern: India has the largest number of freedoms and liberties. The Indian model of
maternal deaths in the world and shocking rates of female democracy also prioritises representation so as to
malnutrition, and a woman in India has lesser chance of avoid the pitfalls of “majority rule”. On this basis,
survival than in all but 2 of 128 countries. The oft-discussed there already exists a quota for Scheduled Castes and
imbalance in the sex ratio can be attributed - not only to female
infanticide, as is often assumed - but to sustained neglect from Scheduled Tribes.
infancy of female health, nutrition and wellbeing. A girl child
It is clear from the statistics alone that women do
is up to 3 times more likely to be malnourished than her
brother (UN), and is also significantly more likely to drop out not have easy “access” to traditional power
of school before completing a full eight years of education. As structures. Their entry into public spaces is
well as passive neglect, violence against women and girl persistently disabled by prevailing historical
children is on the rise: the number of rapes per day has
constructions of gender, created and perpetuated by
increased by nearly 700 per cent since 1971, and thousands of
dowry deaths occur each year (National Crime Records the dominant institutions such as family, religion,
Bureau). education and the State. Nevertheless, the nature of
this relationship also means that the same institutions
which created the imbalance can take responsibility
There are countless studies to demonstrate the
for its repair.
effectiveness of women's empowerment as a tool for
development. For example, Kerala and Manipur have The final objective of reservation is to increase
experienced rapid progress in improving health and women's visibility in all policy decisions on the basis
reducing mortality and fertility rates - the benefits of that all policy decisions affect women as well as men,
which affect men as well as women – and in these and affect women differently to men. This applies
states women also play a vital social and economic equally to the “harder” issues such as trade, industry,
role. This correlation should not be surprising, given agriculture, defence, employment etc., as it does to
that nutrition and child health generally fall within those “softer” issues which are traditionally assigned
the remit of the woman's household decisions. to women politicians.
Ultimately, healthy, educated and empowered Political participation of all sections of society is
women are more likely to raise healthy, educated and essential for building a functioning and
confident children and engage positively with the life representative democracy. Women must therefore be
of the community (UNICEF). present in new arenas of decision making, with their
To eliminate gender discrimination and promote experiences, perspectives and visions of the future
female empowerment, women's decision making informing public debate. Reservation will provide
capacity must therefore be enhanced within the elected women with the ability to compliment elected
household, the workplace and the political sphere. men in making the rules that apply equally to both
Increased political influence should have sexes, and which women are equally expected to
reverberations for women's equality in the other two abide by.

2 IMPFPolicy
CLRA Policy Brief
Brief for Parliamentarians
for Parliamentarians
Political Participation and Mobilisation not matters of specifically female concern outside of
“It is important for women to know that they have to be there the political sphere. They must be raised and debated
(within the political process) where it matters. Whether it is at the rural at all levels, with “women's issues” becoming public
council, urban council or other levels of policy making, they have to be issues.
there to ensure their lot is addressed”.
- Gita Welch, United Nations Development Fund for At the same time, women will become visible as
Women (UNIFEM) competent individuals capable of holding positions of
Of those states reported on in the Election power, enacting laws and demanding accountability
Commission's Report, 2004, the average differential for their implementation within political spaces. There
between voter turnout for men and voter turnout for can be no equal society until women help to elect
women amounts to approximately 7 per cent, and lawmakers and make laws.
rises to substantially more than this within certain Lawful Representation
states. In one 1996 study - four years after the adoption “There is nothing so unequal as the equal treatment of unequals”.
of the 73rd Amendment – more than one in three - Aristotle
women said that they were not interested in local
The Constitution of India is a progressive
elections at all, in contrast with one in every 5 men.
document that guarantees equal rights for both sexes,
There are multiple explanations for this and entitles women to enjoy economic, social, cultural
discrepancy. For one, women are more likely to be and political rights on an equal footing with men
uneducated or illiterate, which has limited the (Article 325). It proceeds to consider the appropriate
dissemination of political ideas and engagement. For use of legislation to redress inequality and prevent the
another, women are currently an unrepresented further infringement of women's fundamental
political minority amongst political institutions that democratic freedoms and human rights. Under Article
have consciously and subconsciously excluded them 15 (3), the State is thereby empowered to make “special
from their registers. Meanwhile, those policies that provisions”, legislative or otherwise, to secure
were originally designed to protect women's rights women's socio-political advancement. Indian case law
and level the playing field have rarely been has already interpreted the Equal Protection
implemented on the ground, further disillusioning provisions to allow for affirmative action for women.
large sections of the female population.
In addition, India is a signatory to a number of
A democracy grants political sovereignty to the international agreements that support proactive state
people: the people must therefore retain a measures for women's political development:
fundamental belief in its ability to represent their
l The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms
needs and act in their interests. In terms of countering
of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) was
apathy, reservation for a sub-group of the population
ratified by India in 1993. Article 3 discusses
can open up the system and demonstrate that a
appropriate measures, including legislation, to
democratically elected government works for them,
ensure the full advancement of women. Beyond
and that is not just an elite bureaucracy functioning
this, Article 7 affirms that signatories should take
solely for the dominant sections of society. Indeed,
all appropriate measures to eliminate
economic and social empowerment cannot be
discrimination against women in the political and
sustained unless women are politically aware, active
public life of the country. It recognises that, unless
participants in all levels of decision making. It is
countries take active steps to promote this
thereby imperative that women are politically
integration, women will never be able to fully
mobilised and engaged with political processes, and
enjoy the basic human rights guaranteed in
for this to happen they must believe that their voices
international law.
are being heard within the legislative spaces.
Women's political participation can provide the l The Inter Parliamentary Union's (IPU) Universal
inspiration for women to take action on a vision of a Declaration on Democracy (1997) asserted that
better and more equal society, and to make “the achievement of genuine democracy
meaningful contributions towards inclusive national presupposes a genuine partnership between men
development. Women are and have been politically and women in the conduct of the affairs of society
active throughout India, and the large and expanding in which they work in equality and
mass of women's groups and advocacy efforts are complementarity, drawing mutual enrichment
testament to this. However, their participation has from their differences.”
been within movements, not structural politics. The l The Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA), 1995
questions of women cannot be asked, certainly not affirmed that women's persistent exclusion from
answered, by individual groups, and women's decision making was substantially hampering the
questions need to be seen as matters of public interest achievement of democratic transformation,

IMPF
CLRA Policy
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for Parliamentarians 3
 Box no.2: Global Progress women's empowerment and achieving the goals of
sustainable development. The BPfA therefore
In 1990, the United Nation's Economic and Social
Council endorsed the implementation of measures to reach a
endorses affirmative action for women in the
target of 30% women in national legislatures by 1995. Nearly political spheres.
20 years later, women occupy only 18% of parliamentary seats Under the Constitution and other national and
around the world, and at the current rate of progress it has
been estimated that gender parity in parliaments will not be
international Commitments, the State is thereby under
achieved until the turn of the twenty-second century (Norris: an obligation to protect and promote the human rights
2004). More countries are therefore deciding to implement a of women, including the right to political equality,
“fast track” route to tackling structural discrimination and without any discrimination on the basis of sex.
increasing female participation. During the last 15 years,
nearly 50 countries have introduced legal quotas for women, Reservations on Reservation
which guarantee a minimum representation of women in
their highest decision making bodies. Inclusion of an OBC/Muslim Sub-Quota:
Percentage of women representatives in Parliament: The greatest impediment to the passing of the Bill
Nordic countries - 41.4% is the insistence from certain political lobbies on a
Americas - 21.8%
“quota within a quota” for women of other backward
Europe (excluding Nordic countries) - 19.1%
Asia - 17.4% classes (OBC). The concern is that, without these
Sub-Saharan Africa - 17.2% provisions, elected women will come from the ruling
Pacific - 13.4% classes alone and will selectively represent the
Arab states - 9.6%
interests of this socio-political elite.
In the high performing Nordic countries, no
constitutional clause or law demands a high representation of OBCs and Muslim women are not currently
women; rather, women's groups have exerted sustained represented within the Women's Reservation Bill
pressure on the major political parties to voluntarily ensure simply because there is no general reservation for OBCs
increases in the number and calibre of female candidates
and Muslims, and as such a sub-quota within the
being fielded through party lists. However, this was not
introduced until women were already present in the Women's Reservation Bill may be unconstitutional.
Parliament, and already holding between 20 and 30% of the Whilst it might be possible to add a sub-clause, the
seats. Elsewhere, there have been numerous problems with push should first be for a Constitutional Amendment
implementation and enforcement of party quotas. In France, that enables a general OBC quota and/or a non-secular
for example, many political parties have preferred to pay
fines rather than put their women candidates up for election. quota for Muslims.
In October 2003, Rwanda came closer than any other This was the recommendation of the Joint Select
country to achieving parity between men and women in a Committee formed in 1996, which responded to a
national legislature, with reservation of seats securing 48.8% common delegation of backward caste MPs with the
women in the Lower House and 34.6% in the Upper House.
Neighbouring countries such as Pakistan and Afghanistan assertion that sub-reservations for OBC women were
have laws that currently give women a higher representation not legally permissible until a separate constitutional
than India (about 25%) in their national parliaments. amendment established a general quota. In addition to
However, many countries have implemented only a number of minor technical adjustments, the
symbolic policy under external pressure from interest groups Committee then recommended that the bill be passed
and the international community, desiring to appear
“modern” without intending to make any genuine difference
into law as soon as possible.
within the existing power dynamics. This is particularly the Interestingly, neither Mulayam Singh Yadav of the
case in countries where the chosen quota type does not match Samajwadi Party nor any other leader has of yet
with the electoral system - as in Uganda, for example, when a
woman's seat is merely attached to that of an existing male
brought a proposal for reservation for OBCs or other
member's. Such policies rarely induce lasting change once the minorities to be debated and discussed in the
quota is removed, since women fail to gain their own power parliament. Once the Women's Reservation Bill is
base and networks (See Box no. 3). passed, quotas for general reservation for other social
In contrast, Taiwan has introduced an outwardly groups can be raised in the parliament as a separate
complicated but well-functioning system of reservation. In
issue, with one third of the seats within these distinct
addition to a stipulated number of seats reserved specifically
for women, there is also a policy of reserving every fifth seat quotas subsequently reserved for women.
in a district for the best performing female candidate. It is Even with no general quota, it is difficult to
therefore in the interests of the parties to nominate women of
understand why it is assumed that OBCs will be less
the highest possible calibre so as to guarantee winning the
“woman's seat”. Moreover, the women are directly elected well represented upon the implementation of women's
and are therefore treated as legitimate political actors. reservation. To quote the former Judge of Delhi High
Currently, women ministers remain concentrated in Court, Justice Rajinder Sachar (PUCL Report, 2003),
social areas (14%) rather than legal (9.4%), economic (4.1%), “There are about 200 OBC candidates in the Lok
political (3.4%) and executive (3.9%), and there are just 13
Sabha… It is not their public service, but merely the caste
female heads of state across the globe (International Women's
Democracy Centre, June 2008). configuration that has preferred them. Similar results
will follow even after the reservation for women.”

4 IMPFPolicy
CLRA Policy Brief
Brief for Parliamentarians
for Parliamentarians
 Subsequently, women's organisations and the external pressure that is intended to effect no real or
National Commission for Women (NCW) have sustainable change within existing structures. Global
accused detractors in parliament of making demands experiences have demonstrated that restricting
for OBC sub-quotas simply to undermine the bill and women's presence to a point below critical mass can
safeguard their own seats, or alternatively to keep inspire little lasting change in existing dynamics and
their Muslim and OBC vote bank intact at a highly leave elected women vulnerable to stigmatisation (see
opportune time. They claim that, within the parties most box no. 3). Furthermore, this cap is actually less likely
protesting about the need for female representation from to open access to the legislatures for women of lower
backward classes, there are remarkably few female socio-economic status - ironic, given that this is the
candidates or elected representatives: the Samajwadi overt justification for the reduction in the allocation of
Party (SP), for example, has 2 women representatives out seats.
of a total of 39 MPs. If these MPs were truly concerned
about the lot of OBC women, it should have been The demand for 33 percent reservation is partly
possible before now to distribute party tickets to female based on research that took place in the United States
candidates from OBCs and other minorities. in the 1970s, which concluded that 30 per cent
representation by minorities in a decision making
There are also very real dangers in
body could significantly influence the majority
compartmentalising the issue of women's
verdict. It is far below the proportion of women in the
empowerment. The NCW have noted that quotas are
general population.
one of the few issues to unite women in parliament
from across party lines - often because many of these How do we avoid electing only “proxy women” to the
women have personally witnessed the systemic Parliament?
discrimination that impedes women's participation in It has been raised as a concern that only women
electoral and political procedures. Reservation is a from the ruling classes will be elected, and that these
tool that begins to repair the damage caused by women are likely to be “proxy women” acting under
centuries of discrimination that exists ubiquitously direction from husbands, family members or party
across political parties, across social classes and across officials. One response to this has been to recommend
community divisions. a clause that restricts the participation of women who
Of any excluded group, the most deprived are directly related to a serving politician. However,
member will always be a woman. 22.5 per cent of seats electoral politics is centred around such networks, and
in Parliament are already reserved for SC/ST - of it is surely unrealistic to throw the charge of tokenism
which just over 7 per cent are held by women - and at women as if men are wholly autonomous of
around 200 MPs are from OBCs (well over a third of networks and party connections. Ultimately, male
the Lok Sabha). In contrast, just 8 per cent of seats in politicians are equally dependent on the political
the national legislature are held by women. leadership for their (re)nomination.

There is undoubtedly a need to further the Women are bound by double standards when it
participation of lower castes and classes, but an comes to politics. They are at once too uneducated or
alternative prop is needed to the Women's too elite to participate in politics; they do not represent
Reservation Bill. The government cannot continue to women enough or they do not behave like “real”
be sidelined on this issue because there are men in politicians, i.e. men. Undoubtedly, there are women in
Parliament who apparently possess more pressing politics who will fit these criteria; there will also be
concerns than the liberation of half the population. women who are part of clans, dynasties, party
Ultimately, men's very presence in Parliament will networks and so forth. However, there are also men
always enable them to shout louder and more often who obtain their position through precisely such
until the Bill is passed. networks, and find they can then use their elected
positions as they wish within the party limits. Once a
Would it be preferable to reduce the number of
woman is elected, she will have to perform her duties,
reserved seats for women and thereby secure the
attend parliament, attend events etc. This cannot be
number of seats held by OBC/SC/ST men?
done by any non-elected agent in her place: she will
Some vociferous critics of the current Bill are have to think for herself, and, if a Bill is to be passed in
arguing for a reduction in the proportion of reserved a non-discriminatory form, policy makers must
seats for women to as little as 10 or 15 per cent. believe that she is capable of doing so.
Discussions between party leaders are rumoured to be
Is reservation itself discriminatory, in that it offers
taking place that aspire to a compromise of 20 to 25 per
voters only a choice of candidates selected against
cent without any provision for an OBC sub-quota. pre-defined criteria rather than merit?
This would pay no more than lip-service to the
principles of egalitarianism - symbolic policy under Parties already select candidates who will stand in

IMPF
CLRA Policy
Policy BriefBrief for Parliamentarians
for Parliamentarians 5
a given constituency, i.e. it is not a completely free situation can decline rapidly to reveal few systemic
choice by the electorate. Since women have been improvements from the point of inception of the
unable to participate alongside men as equals, there is quota.
a need for differentiation which tackles injustice, so as
Quotas can form only one part of a multi-faceted
to enable a route to cultural de-differentiation, i.e. a
strategy for tackling the exclusion of women, and are
levelling of the current imbalances in the power
not an end in and of themselves. Reservation is, of
dynamic that has of yet chosen to ignore the “merits”
course, a means of providing the opportunity to
of half the population. Discrimination is different
participate, but from there significant will and
treatment of equals, whereas affirmative action is an
commitment will need to be invested to render this
attempt to do justice and redress entrenched privilege
participation meaningful. Amongst other measures,
that has created inequality. Given such insignificant
women's participation must be translated into all
progress in enabling women's access to national
decision making bodies - including committees and
legislatures, it is naively optimistic and extremely
advisory boards.
detrimental to sit back and assume that prejudice
against women will simply disappear over time. Finally, it is important to understand that political
equality inside the governing institutions can only
Will affirmative action end after 15 years?
exist in duality with the promotion and protection of
A more substantial criticism concerns the women's rights on the ground. For sustainable
longevity of the terms of the Bill. Reservation of seats change, increased political participation must thereby
is designed as an interim measure to enable women to feed into and emerge from wider redistribution of
overcome the historical disadvantages they face in socio-economic resources, with continuous
accessing traditional systems of power. The worry assessment of how resources, opportunities,
should not be that the quota will remain after fifteen responsibilities and rights are distributed, accessed
years, but that, without supporting measures, fifteen and reinforced.
years may not be long enough to rectify centuries of
Only with this depth of commitment will there be
historical damage exerted by disabling women's
any possibility of achieving sustainable change within
access to the public domain.
a fifteen year timeframe.
This is not to say that reservations do not work, but
Will the system of rotation result in political chaos?
that they cannot exist in isolation: they constitute
necessary but not sufficient reform. The Human Under the present bill, a system of rotation will be
Development in South Asia Report, 2003 discusses an established which will randomly determine one third
“embedded system of patriarchy in South Asia”, of the total number of constituencies to be reserved
which has meant that “discrimination against women solely for women candidates. The key concerns with
in South Asia is far worse than in most other this system are that:
developing countries.” Even where the physical and
l The lottery system for earmarking reserved
economic condition of women noticeably improves in
constituencies will provide few incentives for
the region - as has been the case in Sri Lanka - the social
aspirants and incumbents to nurse their
position of women rarely changes. To improve
constituencies, as neither men nor women will
women's social standing, political participation is
know in advance which constituencies will be
crucial, but unfortunately political participation does
open to them until the elections
not exist outside of the “embedded patriarchy”.
Examples from South Asian countries have It should be disheartening to openly assume that
demonstrated that, when quotas are removed, the politicians will refuse to work for the public good if they
do not have absolute guaranteed certainty of standing
again, since this is in effect the nature of elections and
Box no.3: Experiences of Affirmative Action in
South Asia democracy. Politicians are ultimately accountable to the
political parties which they represent, and it is not in
In Pakistan, time bound affirmative action lapsed after the
1988 election and in 1993 just 4 women (out of a previous 24) party interests to have a poor or non-performing
were elected to Parliament. In Nepal, 8 women were returned member within any particular constituency.
in the general elections of 1991 and 7 in the 1994 mid-term
elections (less than 4 per cent). In Bangladesh, six women l Reserved constituencies may not correspond with
remained in the House in 2004 after the lapse of reserved seats the location of the most meritorious female
in 2001. Reports suggest that this failure to secure sustainable candidates.
political influence for women was not because female
representatives were incapable of high performance, but It should not be assumed that there will be no good
because of limited numbers, a lack of direct election, inability to women candidates in any constituency: if there are
obtain critical mass and the intransigence of male colleagues.
men who are capable of running for election, there will

6 CLRA Policy Brief for Parliamentarians

 also be women. In practice, it is in party political
Box no.4: Experiences in Panchayati Raj Institutions
interests to nominate the best possible female (PRIs)
candidates in all reserved constituencies, since
they will be competing against women from the The challenges faced by elected women in local government
are often extreme, and have been widely documented by both
other political parties and need to have the best
proponents and critics of women's reservation. However, it is
possible chance of winning. The advantage of the important to note that there are also many success stories from
quota system is that it forces the nominating within the PRIs. Where women's presence has been
bodies, especially the political parties, to engage meaningful, they have been able to make a significant
in an active recruitment process (see Krook, 2005). contribution to the life of the community and offer an
alternative perspective to the traditional status quo. Women's
In doing so, they will need to address the panchayats have also successfully campaigned and taken
conditions and culture in which party politics action on pressing issues that impact on women's rights such as
plays out, thus taking positive steps to make alcoholism, child marriage, domestic violence and gambling.
political participation more attractive for women. Nevertheless, the experiments with reservation in PRIs have
demonstrated that it will be necessary to ensure that women
This will be especially important in areas where access equal opportunities to progress within the political
there are not already clearly identified female system, and that fixed reservation in the Lok Sabha does not act
candidates. as a seal on participation. Few women from PRIs have of yet
managed to progress through the ranks and enter State
l It might be unlikely that any woman will get Assemblies, national legislatures etc. Processes of promotion
elected more than once to the Lok Sabha or State within decision making bodies must therefore be facilitated,
Assemblies, which will effectively mean that for it is overly simplistic to imagine that prejudice is not
dispersed within the institutions of governance themselves.
women candidates enjoy no more than a token
stint inside the legislative bodies.
With support from political parties, four or five cent. In terms of percentage, the CPI (M) fares better,
years should be long enough for women to with 5 women MPs out of 43 and 12 per cent
demonstrate their capabilities and win over the public representation. The BJP has 11 women MPs among its
vote. It is not, in practice, a short space of time. 129 MPs - 9 per cent. The DMK has 19 per cent
However, the current Bill will also allow for women's representatives in the parliament, which
reservation of seats to be frozen for two consecutive amounts to 3 out of its total of 16. The NCP has the
terms, which will provide women members with highest percentage (36) of women's representatives: 4
more time to establish stable networks within existing out of 11. The figures are not impressive, but a
systems. In either case, it will be imperative for parties majority of the political parties claim to firmly support
to secure lasting power bases for women members the Women's Reservation Bill and included it as a
during the period of their tenure, so as to ensure that matter of primary importance in their 2004 election
women candidates remain electable once the seat is manifestoes.
unreserved.
In some ways, quotas are a remedy to a disease, but in some Box no.5: Statements made by the political
cases they can lead to another disease. As we have seen in Central parties/alliances, 2004
and Eastern European countries, quotas have led to a ceiling. They BJP- Commitment to women's all-round empowerment.
have led countries to not develop a political culture whereby women The BJP is ready to back “any consensus formula” to ensure
are integrated into the political system. early legislation for women's reservation in Parliament and
- Christine Pintat, Inter-Parliamentary Union, State Legislatures. In 2007, the party announced 33 per cent
Switzerland reservation for women in its organisational set up
NDA- “The Bill for 33 per cent reservation for women in
For this reason, it is essential that political parties Parliament and State Legislatures will be introduced in the
take steps to “integrate” women into political very first session of Parliament. The NDA will work for
processes and ensure that they capture equal speedy passage of this progressive legislation based on a
influence among key stakeholders. consensus.”
INC Congress “Our party pledges to press for the
Political Promises: More than Empty Words? Constitutional Amendment to reserve one-third of seats in the
Lok Sabha and in Vidhan Sabhas for women.”
“That should be our aim: a situation in which all individuals are
enabled to maximise their potential, and to contribute to the evolution CPI (M) - While holding the NDA government squarely
of society as a whole.” responsible for the shameful failure to pass the Women's
Reservation Bill, the CPI(M) pledges to continue its firm
- Kofi Annan, Former United Nations Secretary-General support for one-third reservation for women in the
legislatures and to work for its passage in the new parliament.
Various Indian political parties nominated female
candidates at the time of the elections to the Lok Sabha DMK “Our party will strive for passing the Women's
Reservation Bill and for empowering them with more seats in
in 2004. The Congress has 15 women out of a total of the parliament and in the state legislatures.”
152 party members in the parliament: about 10 per

IMPF
CLRA Policy
Policy BriefBrief for Parliamentarians
for Parliamentarians 7
Policy Recommendations Acknowledgments:
CLRA would like to thank Prof. Mary E. John from the Centre for
l Strong political will and commitment will be instrumental
Women's Development Studies and Dr. N. Hamsa from Women
in facilitating the passing of the Women's Reservation Bill.
Power Connect for their feedback and guidance in developing this
Constitutional and political action needs to play a policy brief.
proactive role in extending women's reservation by
passing it as an Act of Law, rather than leaving it to the References:
good faith of the political parties. Dahlerup, Drude ed., Women Quotas and Politics (London and
New York: Routledge, 2006)
l The Bill needs to be passed in the monsoon session of the
parliament so as to enable women to enter politics in larger Drèze, Jean and Amartya Sen, “Gender Inequality and Women's
Agency”, in Class, Caste, Gender, ed. Manoranjan Mohanty (New
numbers and ensure greater gender equity within
Delhi: Sage, 2004)
parliament.
International IDEA, “Democracy through Partnership: the
l Time frame and targets should be established for experience of the IPU, Women in Politics: Beyond Numbers”, as
achieving women's equal representation and participation v i e w e d o n A u g u s t 2 5 , 2 0 0 8 a t
at decision/policy making levels. http://archive.idea.int/women/parl/ch6b.htm
l Reinforce government policy commitments such as IWDC, Factsheet on Women in Politics, available online at
CEDAW, MDGs, NPEW, 2001 and NCMP, 2004. http://www.iwdc.org/resources/fact_sheet.htm
Krook, Mona Lena, “Competing Claims: Quotas for Women and
l Hold regular reviews of the effectiveness and degree of
Minorities in India and France” (presented at the European
women's participation once the Bill is enacted. Consortium for Political Research, Budapest, September 8-10th
l Make women's membership of decision making bodies 2005)
such as committees/sub-committees, arbitration councils Mumtaz, Khawar, “Women's Representation, Effectiveness and
etc mandatory. This will prevent their exclusion from Leadership in South Asia” (UNIFEM, 2005)
decision-making processes within the Parliament. National Alliance of Women, India Second NGO Shadow Report
l Sensitise male members as to the necessity of women's on CEDAW, Chapter 5, “Political and Public Life” (November
2 0 0 6 ) . R e p o r t a v a i l a b l e a t
inclusion in the business of the elected body.
http://www.nawoindia.org/Pdf/CEDAW_Shadow_report_2006
l Hold a review after 15 years and thereafter to see whether .pdf
there is a need for extension of provisions for reservation. It Rasheeda, Bhagat, “Getting women into parliament- why the quota
must be ensured that female participation does not decline system is crucial”, The Hindu Business Line, 29 July 2003
once the provisions are removed
Sumita, Ray, Women's Reservation Bill (Advocacy Internet: Vol. 5;
l To enable full and meaningful participation, reservation Issue No.4; July-Aug 2003; National Centre for Advocacy Studies)
must also be extended to the Rajya Sabha and State UNICEF, “Women and Children: The Double Dividend of Gender
Legislative Councils. Equality” (2007)
l Augment a pool of state funding for female contestants Women Power Connect, Position Paper on the Right to Equal
who are standing outside of reserved seats - in particular Representation and the Women's Reservation Bill (December
once the reservation on a seat has come to an end. This will 2007).
enable women to run a campaign for election that is on a Report of the Joint Select Committee on the Constitution (Eighty-
par with male candidates, particularly in the case of party First Amendment) Bill,1996 (Lok Sabha Secretariat, 1996)
political preference for men.
l Ensure that political parties increase their number of Policy brief series: No. 3: 2008, July
women candidates, that is to say, women candidates with a Women’s Reservation; A Long Delayed and a Much
fair chance of winning. The quota must be embedded in the Needed Step
selection and the nomination processes from the very Authors:
beginning. Laura Keenan, CLRA
Sameena Mir, CLRA
l Consider freezing rotation of reserved seats for two
consecutive terms to allow time for the full integration of Editorial inputs:
Vinod Bhanu
women candidates into the political system.

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8 IMPF
CLRA Policy
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