Supreme Court Seeks Centre's Response on Women's Reservation Law Implementation Timeline

The Supreme Court on Monday requested a response from the Centre regarding a petition seeking implementation of the women's reservation law. This legislation requires one-third of seats in the Lok Sabha, State legislative assemblies, and Delhi Assembly to be reserved for women.

A Bench comprising Justices BV Nagarathna and R Mahadevan issued a notice to the Centre requesting their reply on this matter.

Justice Nagarathna, the only female judge currently serving in the Supreme Court, observed that women constitute the largest minority in India. She remarked, "The Preamble states all citizens are entitled to political and social equality. Who represents the largest minority in this country? It is women... almost 48 percent. This concerns the political equality of women."

The Bench was addressing a petition filed by Congress leader Jaya Thakur, which calls for the implementation of the Women's Reservation Act 2024 without waiting for a new delimitation exercise to be conducted.

Senior Advocate Shobha Gupta, representing the petitioner, expressed disappointment that even after more than seven decades of independence, it remains necessary to approach the courts to secure adequate representation for women.

While directing the petition to be served to the government, Justice Nagarathna requested information about when the delimitation exercise would take place.

She also clarified that law enforcement remains the responsibility of the executive branch, and the court cannot issue a mandamus (a judicial order compelling a specific action or duty).

The Constitution (106th Amendment) Act, 2023, reserves one-third of all seats for women in the Lok Sabha, State legislative assemblies, and the Legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, including seats already reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

The reservation will become effective following the publication of the first census conducted after the Act's commencement and will remain in force for 15 years, with possible extension through parliamentary action.

The rotation of seats allocated for women will be determined by parliamentary legislation following each delimitation process.