Women’s representation in parliament and most state legislatures across the country is below 15%, with 19 state legislatures having less than 10% women legislators, according to government data.
Women’s representation in parliament and in most state legislatures across the country is below 15%, with 19 state assemblies having less than 10% women legislators, according to government data.
State legislatures with more than 10% female legislators include Bihar (10.70), Chhattisgarh (14.44), Haryana (10), Jharkhand (12.35), Punjab (11 ,11), Rajasthan (12), Uttarakhand (11.43), Uttar Pradesh (11:66), West Bengal (13:70) and Delhi (11:43).
According to data presented by the Minister of Law and Justice Kiren Rijiju at the Lok Sabha on December 9, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Goa, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Odisha, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu and Telangana have less than 10% women legislators.
In the recent assembly elections in Gujarat, 8.2% of those elected were women, while in Himachal Pradesh, only one woman was elected this time.
According to the data, the share of female MPs in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha stands at 14.94% and 14.05%, respectively.
At the same time, the average number of women deputies in the country’s assemblies is only 8%.
The issue regarding the representation of women MPs and MPs in Parliament and State Legislative Assemblies was raised by Trinamool Congressman Lok Sabha Abhishek Banerjee, who also asked the Center about the steps it has taken to increase their overall representation.
He further inquired whether the government was planning to submit the Women Reservation Bill to Parliament.
To which Rijiju said, “Gender justice is an important government commitment. All political parties should carefully discuss this issue on the basis of consensus before submitting the Constitution Amendment Bill to Parliament. Recently, political parties like Biju Janata Dal (BJD), Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), Janata Dal United JD(U) and Trinamool Congress (TMC) called on the government to introduce and re-pass the the reservation of women in Parliament.
“The BJD has requested the Center to pass the bill during the current winter session of Parliament,” Rajya Sabha member Dr. Sasmit Patra told PTI.
“If the government comes up with a bill, our party will support it,” he said, adding that Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has repeatedly expressed his commitment to the issue of empowerment. women.
A few days ago, at a meeting of the Business Advisory Committee convened by Lok Sabha President Om Birla, Sudip Bandopadhyay of the Trinamool Congress demanded a multi-party meeting on the issue, which was supported by many other parties.
SAD MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal said now is the time to pass the Women’s Reservation Bill and give women their due.
JDU MP Rajeev Ranjan Singh said it is time to empower women and the government should introduce this bill.
The bill, which seeks to reserve one-third of seats in the Lok Sabha and state legislatures for women, was first introduced in parliament in 1996.
It was passed in the Rajya Sabha in 2010, but after the dissolution of the 15th Lok Sabha, the bill lapsed.
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