On Wednesday, the Union Cabinet sanctioned a draft amendment bill designed to implement the Women’s Reservation Act ahead of its previous timeline, potentially allowing for its application in the 2029 general elections.

This decision emerged from a Cabinet meeting led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as reported by sources familiar with the matter. The amendment aims to adjust the current structure of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, officially known as the Constitution (106th Amendment) Act, which was enacted in 2023.

The proposed changes would increase the total number of Lok Sabha seats from 543 to 816, with approximately 273 of these seats—around 33%—set aside specifically for women. This reservation will adopt a vertical quota approach, ensuring that representation is maintained for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) as well.

Significantly, the government intends to carry out the delimitation process using data from the 2011 Census rather than waiting for the upcoming 2027 Census. This strategy is aimed at accelerating the implementation timeline, which under the existing legislation could have postponed the initiative until as late as 2034.

In conjunction with this, the Centre has prolonged the current Budget Session of Parliament and has arranged for a special three-day sitting from April 16 to 18. During this period, it is anticipated that the amendment bill will be introduced and passed.

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