Women’s Quota Bill: Centre Seeks Consensus Ahead Of Key Amendments

Last Updated:March 22, 2026, 13:31 IST

Government sources said a series of informal consultations with political parties will begin on Monday, with senior BJP leaders holding one-on-one meetings with larger parties

The Centre has initiated fresh political outreach to build consensus on a proposed amendment to the Women’s Reservation framework, signalling a significant step forward on the legislation.

Government sources said a series of informal consultations with political parties will begin on Monday, with senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders holding one-on-one meetings with larger parties while smaller parties will be engaged in group discussions.

The exercise is aimed at gauging the political mood and ironing out differences on the proposed changes. The outreach comes amid the recognition that any constitutional amendment would require a two-thirds majority in both Houses of Parliament, a threshold the government does not currently command on its own.

According to sources, the proposed bill, yet to receive Union Cabinet approval, may seek to operationalise women’s reservation by 2029 without linking it to the delimitation exercise.

Instead, the implementation could be based on the 2011 Census, a move likely to trigger political debate given earlier provisions tying reservation to post-delimitation data. Government functionaries believe this approach could fast-track implementation, which has otherwise been seen as contingent on a future census and redrawing of constituencies.

Efforts to build consensus are already underway. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju has reached out to key opposition leaders, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, ahead of the second half of the Budget Session.

A letter from Kharge to Rijiju on the issue has also surfaced on social media. In recent days, Rijiju, along with the Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, Arjunram Meghwal, who also holds the Law portfolio, has been in touch with major opposition parties, smaller regional outfits and NDA allies, as the Law Ministry pilots the proposed amendments.

The current push builds on the landmark legislation passed by Narendra Modi government in 2023, the Constitution (106th Amendment) Act, widely known as the Women’s Reservation Bill, which provides for 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies.

However, its implementation was made contingent upon the completion of the next census and subsequent delimitation exercise, effectively pushing the rollout to a later date.

The proposed amendment now under discussion is seen as an attempt to delink or ease these conditions and expedite the actual enforcement of women’s reservation in elected bodies.

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