Abstract
This article deals with the issue of political reservations for women in the Union Parliament and the State legislatures. Examining the case for representation for women in the present constitutional framework in India, this article studies various factors which have contributed to the low political representation of women. Comprehensively studying the Women's Reservation Bill, first proposed in 1996, the political climate at the time and the subsequent developments which have followed, this article rejects the objections to reservation for women and argues as to why reservation of seats in legislatures would facilitate women's empowerment. In conclusion, the author posits that the best solution is to enact the Bill and allow Parliament or the political parties to evolve the mechanism to distribute seats across the social and economic spectrum and end, once and for all, the perpetuating political procrastination on the proposal.
Recommended Citation
Dhavan, Rajeev
(2008)
"Reservations for Women: The Way Forward,"
National Law School of India Review: Vol. 20:
Iss.
1, Article 1.
Available at:
https://repository.nls.ac.in/nlsir/vol20/iss1/1
