BJP TODAY

May 16--31, 2003 - Vol. 12, No. 10

Women's Reservation Bill again in the Cold Storage
Reservation within reservation?
By Our Special Correspondent

The Samajvadi Party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal and some other parties, who are constituents of the National Democratic Alliance, again foiled the attempt of the Government to get the Constitutional Amendment Bill providing for 33 percent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies in the Lok Sabha on May 6.

These parties have described the Bill as "elitist" in nature alleging that it sought to ensure seats in the Lok Sabha and the State Assemblies only for the highly educated upper castes, leaving in the lurch the not-so-well educated women from the backward and other disadvantaged castes as also minorities. Unless reservation for these sections of the society too was ensured, these leaders said, they would not permit the passage of the bill.

It is, however, anybody's guess as to what is the real reason for opposing the bill even at the discussion stage. It was introduced in 2001 despite physical opposition by the Samajvadi Party Members of the Lok Sabha. One opinion is that several male members of the House who have nursed their constituencies well and have a base among the prominent caste groups in the area, might lose those constituencies to women and after that it would not be possible for them to re-enter the Lok Sabha or State Assemblies since it takes time to develop a constituency.

While the Samajvadi Party is silent now on it, it is on record that they want the percentage of reservation to be reduced to 15 from 33. A document issued by the party chief in 2001 to this effect was published in BJP TODAY.

Thirdly, almost all opponents feel that there would not be sufficient number of women who could like to contest the elections. This is because many feel that in certain States at least election is really a sham. Either "scintific rigging" or raw muscle power determine the outcome of elections there. Decent women would not like to rough it out and hence the fear that 33 percent women may not come forward to contest elections even if given tickets.

One question can still be asked in this connection. If one or more parties are opposed to any Bill in the House, what is the way to express that opposition? A Parliamentary system provides for debates in the House, and for voting. If the majority has the support for the Bill. It becomes a law. But we hear on television that respected leaders of certain parties have threatened physical obstruction to the passage of the Bill. Civilisational divide?