Mahila Samakhya seeks implementation of 33% reservation for women

Members of the Andhra Pradesh Mahila Samakhya under the National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) organised a signature campaign near the Gandhi statue at the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) office here on Thursday, demanding the immediate implementation of the law providing 33% reservation for women in legislatures.

Andhra Pradesh Mahila Samakhya district general secretary M.A. Begum said the demand for women’s reservation had been pending since 1996, when veteran parliamentarian Geeta Mukherjee introduced a Bill in Parliament seeking 33% reservation for women.

She said that after years of sustained struggles by women’s organisations, Parliament passed the Women’s Reservation Act in 2023. However, she alleged that the Centre had not implemented the legislation and had instead linked its enforcement to the Census and the delimitation exercise.

Ms. Begum urged the Centre to implement the legislation without imposing any preconditions and to do so during the forthcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament.

As part of the campaign, participants collected signatures in support of their demand. The organisers said a memorandum would be submitted to the District Collector on July 6, urging the Union Government to bring the legislation into force without further delay.