WHAT was proved beyond doubt about the Women’s Reservation Bill is that it nothing more than a drama; a drama enacted on the basis of imagination with no bearing on reality. Imagination can run riot. However, the august Parliament should not be a stage for drama. While the Opposition may have whimsical ways, the Government should conduct itself responsibly toward the nation. The Women’s Reservation Bill was introduced in Parliament, marking a fifth attempt to ensure one-third representation for women in both Parliament and state assemblies. If proportional representation is resorted to – which is ideal – women should be given half the total number of seats. The one-third reservation was also a good step forward. But beyond the drama and the huge expenses the exchequer bore by convening a three-day additional session of Parliament to discuss and vote on the legislation, it produced a stillborn result. The “foetus” that Prime Minister Narendra Modi referred to in his address to the nation on Saturday could be termed as another deceit. It was rather a metaphor for his own duplicity.
Had Modi been serious about this legislation, the first and foremost thing he and the government he heads should have done was engage in discussions with the Opposition and forge a consensus before introducing the legislation. He, however, was not even willing to listen to the Opposition. He expected it to stand on a line that he had drawn. It is well-known that Modi did not receive a majority mandate in the last parliamentary polls. He could form and run the present government with the support of two parties not part of the NDA: the JDU of Nitish Kumar and Telugu Desam of Chandrababu Naidu – the two regional satraps who were at the forefront of undermining him in the past. The Opposition this time is powerful; the Congress itself won around a hundred seats. It managed to group together some 230 MPs in the Lok Sabha to vote against the bill – not against the agenda of women reservation, per se – while the government side was backed by 298 members. The divide is glaring. Knowing this, it is a big question why Modi attempted to introduce this legislation through a special session, other than for his questionable urge to act as the sole messiah of women and garner their votes.
The Opposition has a mind of its own. Unless a consensus is reached, the Government cannot steamroll such legislation through Parliament because it does not have a two-thirds majority. Sadly, Modi attempted this even when his original NDA set-up did not even have a simple majority in Parliament. Perceptions suggest that Modi sought to fool women. Having attempted what could amount to deceit, it looks strange that he turns back and blames the Opposition. In this shameful scenario, women failed to get what’s their due. The Government should have been serious about passing this legislation by not linking the whole process to delimitation and the increase in the number of seats in Parliament based on population. This would have filled Parliament with North Indian MPs while seats for the rest of the country would dwindle or remain the same. It was a clever way to try and pass a legislation that would have been strongly opposed if done separately. Thankfully the Opposition voted out this treacherous bill.
