Model Answer

Introduction

Political empowerment of women is a core component of substantive democracy. Despite constitutional guarantees of equality, women’s representation in legislatures has remained low (around 15% in Lok Sabha). The 106th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2023 seeks to address this structural imbalance by institutionalizing reservation for women in elected bodies.

Key Provisions of the Act

The Act introduces specific constitutional changes to ensure women’s representation:

Reservation in Lok Sabha and State Assemblies: One-third of total seats are reserved for women, including within seats reserved for SCs/STs.

Insertion of New Articles:

Article 330A: Reservation in Lok Sabha

Article 332A: Reservation in State Assemblies

Article 239AA: Extends reservation to Delhi Legislative Assembly

Rotation of Seats: Reserved constituencies will rotate after each delimitation exercise to ensure wider participation.

Conditional Implementation: Reservation will come into force only after the next Census and delimitation, creating a time lag.

Sunset Clause: Reservation is valid for 15 years, with scope for extension.

Significance

Bridges Representation Gap: Enhances descriptive representation in law-making bodies.

Deepens Democracy: Aligns with principles of inclusive governance and gender justice.

Policy Impact: Greater focus on issues like health, education, and gender-based violence (as seen in Panchayati Raj experience).

Challenges and Concerns

Delayed Implementation: Linking with delimitation creates uncertainty, potentially postponing benefits for years.

Proxy Representation: Risk of women acting as nominal representatives, with real power held by male relatives (Sarpanch Pati phenomenon).

Lack of Intersectionality: No separate quota for OBC women may lead to elite capture within the reserved category.

Restriction on Voter Choice: Mandatory reservation may limit electoral competition in certain constituencies.

Exclusion of Upper Houses: No reservation in Rajya Sabha and Legislative Councils reduces overall impact.

Rotation Issues: Frequent rotation may discourage long-term constituency development and political accountability.

Way Forward

Ensure time-bound implementation by expediting Census and delimitation.

Introduce sub-quotas for OBC women to ensure inclusivity.

Strengthen capacity-building and leadership training for women representatives.

Promote internal party democracy and ticket distribution reforms.

Conclusion

The 106th Amendment is a transformative reform that moves India from formal equality towards substantive equality. However, its success will depend on timely execution and complementary institutional reforms to ensure that women’s representation translates into real political empowerment rather than symbolic presence.