tharoor-slams-politics-over-women-s-reservation-law

Shashi Tharoor, Congress leader, has raised  serious issues regarding the three-day special session of Parliament scheduled to discuss changes to the law relating to women's reservation. On Saturday, Tharoor stated that the changes being considered should not be limited to being a tool in politics that endangers the spirit of federalism or undermines the deliberative process of the Parliament.

 

In a statement shared on X, Tharoor suggested that the government’s decision to convene this sudden session is a strategic move designed to gain political leverage before state elections, while also laying the groundwork for a delimitation exercise ahead of the 2029 general polls. While he reaffirmed the Congress party’s long-standing commitment to a one-third quota for women, he insisted that any such measure must be implemented in a way that is both fair and inclusive.

 

Reflecting on the recent Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, Tharoor noted that while his party was the first to champion the cause — having introduced and passed a similar bill in the Rajya Sabha back in 2013 — the current administration’s methods are deeply worrying. The government’s plan reportedly involves increasing the number of Lok Sabha seats to 816, with 273 reserved for women. However, the CWC has condemned what it describes as a unilateral and opaque approach, noting that rushing through a delimitation exercise alongside the bill could destabilise the democratic balance between states, particularly affecting those in the South and Northeast.

 

Tharoor highlighted that the government had originally postponed the law’s implementation until after the completion of the Census. It is believed that using the special session in this regard can jeopardise the constitutional process.

 

Congress party, in general, has alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party government is politicising the matter, arguing that making the quota conditional upon the delimitation process is unconstitutionally dangerous.

 

Also read: Tharoor’s gunman, driver attacked in Malappuram; One held