SC seeks Centre’s response on delay in implementing women’s reservation Act

A bench of justices BV Nagarathna and R Mahadevan, while hearing the plea, remarked that the promise of equality in the Preamble must translate into real representation.

“The Preamble says political and social equality. Who is the largest minority in this country? It is the woman… almost 48 %. This is about the political equality of women,” Justice Nagarathna observed during the hearing.

The court was dealing with a petition moved by Congress leader Jaya Thakur, who has sought the enforcement of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam (Women’s Reservation Act) without waiting for a fresh census and delimitation exercise. The 2023 legislation mandates reserving one-third of seats in the Lok Sabha, state legislative assemblies, and the Delhi Assembly for women, but ties its implementation to the next delimitation to be carried out after the first census post-enactment.