Women’s Reservation Bill (Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam) पारित लेकिन लागू नहीं – स्थिति, चुनौतियाँ और UPSC प्रासंगिकता

<h2>Women’s Reservation Bill (Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam) Passed but Unimplemented – Status, Challenges and UPSC Relevance</h2> <p>According to the <span class="key-term" data-definition="Inter‑Parliamentary Union (IPU) — A global organization of national parliaments that tracks women’s representation and other parliamentary data (GS1: International Relations)">IPU</span> report released to mark 30 years of the Beijing Declaration, global women’s representation in national legislatures rose from 11.3% to 27.2% (1995‑2025). In the same period, India’s share moved from 7.2% to 13.8%, still less than half the world average. The <span class="key-term" data-definition="Women’s Reservation Bill — A legislative proposal to reserve 33% of seats for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, finally enacted as the 106th Constitutional Amendment in September 2023 (GS2: Polity)">Women’s Reservation Bill</span> (now the <span class="key-term" data-definition="Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam — The formal name of the Women’s Reservation Bill after its passage as the 106th Constitutional Amendment (GS2: Polity)">Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam</span>) has been passed unanimously but remains dormant.</p> <h3>Key Developments (1995‑2025)</h3> <ul> <li>1995‑2025: Global women’s parliamentary share doubles to 27.2% (IPU).</li> <li>1995‑2025: India’s share climbs to 13.8% – still far below the global average.</li> <li>1996, 1998, 1999, 2008: Four attempts to amend the Constitution for women’s reservation lapse with Lok Sabha dissolutions.</li> <li>2021: National Federation of Indian Women files a PIL for re‑introduction of the bill.</li> <li>September 2023: <strong>106th Constitutional Amendment (Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam)</strong> passed unanimously in both Houses.</li> <li>2024‑2026: Implementation delayed; law awaits <span class="key-term" data-definition="Delimitation — Redrawing of electoral constituency boundaries based on the latest Census, a prerequisite for applying the reservation quota (GS2: Polity)">delimitation</span> linked to the forthcoming Census.</li> </ul> <h3>Important Facts</h3> <ul> <li><strong>Reservation quota:</strong> 33% of Lok Sabha and state assembly seats for women.</li> <li><strong>SC/ST sub‑quota:</strong> One‑third of seats reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes must be filled by women from those communities.</li> <li><strong>OBC omission:</strong> No reservation for Other Backward Classes women within the 33% quota – a point of criticism.</li> <li><strong>Women candidates (2014 Lok Sabha):</strong> Only 8.1% of 8,251 candidates were women; the highest share were independents, indicating party reluctance.</li> <li><strong>Women ministers (2023 WEF):</strong> Less than 7% of cabinet positions held by women.</li> <li><strong>Local bodies:</strong> 73rd & 74th Amendments guarantee 33% women’s reservation in panchayats/municipalities, yet many elected <span class="key-term" data-definition="Sarpanch pati / Pradhan pati — Mal