New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was ”delighted” as the Lok Sabha unanimously passed The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Amendment) Bill, 2023 after a day-long debate on Wednesday. PM Modi commended the exceptional support received and took to social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to thank all Lok Sabha MPs for their endorsement of the ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’ Bill.
“Delighted at the passage of The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Amendment) Bill, 2023 in the Lok Sabha with such phenomenal support. I thank MPs across Party lines who voted in support of this Bill. The ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’ is historic legislation which will further boost women empowerment and will enable even greater participation of women in our political process”, tweets PM Modi.
Delighted at the passage of The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Amendment) Bill, 2023 in the Lok Sabha with such phenomenal support. I thank MPs across Party lines who voted in support of this Bill.
The Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam is a historic legislation which…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 20, 2023
The Prime Minister’s response came shortly after the Lok Sabha unanimously passed the Women’s Reservation Bill, entailing a 33 per cent reservation for women in both the Lok Sabha and state assemblies. The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Amendment) Bill, 2023 was approved following a comprehensive explanation by Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal.
During the division, 454 members voted in favour of the legislation, while two members voted against it. The Opposition’s proposed amendments were rejected, and voting also took place on various clauses of the bill. Speaker Om Birla finally announced the successful passage of the Bill.
The ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’ is the inaugural bill passed by the Lok Sabha since its relocation to the new Parliament building on Tuesday. The bill was passed by a majority of the total membership of the House and by a majority of not less than two-thirds of the members of the House “present and voting.” The division was conducted through the distribution of slips.
Meghwal remarked that the passage of the bill was creating “history.” He dismissed the Opposition’s critique regarding the delay in implementing provisions of the Bill, asserting that the bill ensures transparency. The bill was passed after a day-long debate initiated by Congress leader Sonia Gandhi.
Intervening in the debate, Union Home Minister Amit Shah rejected the Opposition’s contentions and stated that the bill will follow due procedure, with reserved seats being decided by the Delimitation Commission.
Several Opposition members, including Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, emphasized that caste census and delimitation were unnecessary for the immediate implementation of the Women’s Reservation Bill once it’s passed by Parliament.
“While I appreciate this bill, I believe it would have been more comprehensive with the inclusion of OBC reservation,” Rahul Gandhi mentioned. “The bill should be implemented without delay, without the need for delimitation and census,” he added.
After clearing the Lok Sabha hurdle, the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Amendment) Bill, 2023 is anticipated to be taken up by the Rajya Sabha on Thursday.
In 2010, the Rajya Sabha had previously passed the Women’s Reservation Bill during the Congress-led UPA government. However, it was not taken up in the Lok Sabha and subsequently lapsed in the lower House of Parliament.
The government introduced the new bill on Tuesday, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi announcing the government’s intention to introduce the ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam.’
Sources mentioned that the division was conducted through slips as information regarding division numbers in the New House is awaited from some parties in the Lok Sabha. The Special Session of Parliament commenced on Monday and is scheduled to continue till Friday.
