Women's Bill seeks to insert two new articles in Constitution

The Women's Reservation Bill, which created much heat in Parliament today, seeks to insert two new articles in the Constitution to provide one-third reservation to women in Lok Sabha and state Assemblies.

"After article 330 of the Constitution, the following article shall be inserted: 330A. Seats shall be reserved for women in the House of the People," says the Constitution (One Hundred and Eighth Amendment Bill, 2008), popularly called Women's Reservation Bill.

To provide reservation for women in state Assemblies, the Bill seeks to insert Article 332A in the Constitution.

According to the Bill, provided that where a seat reserved for Scheduled Castes and Schedule Tribes in relation to a state or a Union Territory is one, then in every block comprising of three Lok Sabha elections, the seat in the first LS election "shall" be reserved for women belonging to SCs or STs "and no seat shall be reserved in other two general elections".

The Bill adds that if the seats reserved for SCs and STs in relation to a state or a UT are two, then "one seat shall be reserved for women belonging to the SCs or the STs in the first two general elections in such a manner that the same constituency is not reserved for women in both the aforesaid elections".

Also, according to the Bill introduced in Rajya Sabha in May 2008, no seat shall be reserved for women belonging to the SCs and STs in the third general election.