New Delhi: The Union Cabinet led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to approve key legal amendments aimed at implementing the long-pending 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies ahead of the 2029 general elections.
According to government sources, two crucial bills are expected to be cleared to facilitate the rollout. The first seeks to amend provisions of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, which currently mandates that one-third reservation for women can only be implemented after a delimitation exercise conducted post the 2026 Census.
The second proposed amendment targets the 84th Constitutional Amendment Act, which freezes the delimitation of parliamentary and assembly constituencies until 2026. To expedite the reservation process, the government is planning to lift this freeze and enable an earlier delimitation exercise.
As part of the broader plan, the Centre is also considering increasing the number of seats in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies by nearly 50 percent. The proposed women’s reservation would then be applied to this expanded strength of legislative bodies.
If approved, the move is expected to significantly enhance women’s political representation and mark a major reform in India’s electoral framework ahead of the 2029 polls.
