LI Network
Published on: December 18, 2023 at 18:07 IST
The Delhi High Court dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petition that sought the implementation of the Women’s Reservation Act 2023 before the upcoming 2024 general elections The Act mandates a 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha.
A Division Bench consisting of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Mini Pushkarna asserted that Parliament has already outlined that the Act’s provisions would be enforced post the delimitation exercise, and the Court is bound by this directive.
Examining the Act, the Bench stated that if the petitioner desires an early implementation, she should challenge the Act’s specific provisions dictating reservation post the census and delimitation.
The Court emphasized its inability to act contrary to the parliamentary stipulation in Section 334A, which mandates the Act’s implementation after delimitation.
Referring to an existing plea challenging the Act’s provisions before the Supreme Court, the High Court suggested that the petitioner could approach the apex court. Eventually, the petitioner withdrew the plea, and the Court granted her the liberty to approach the Supreme Court.
Previously, the petitioner had approached a single judge of the Delhi High Court, but it was recommended that the nature of the reliefs sought warranted filing a PIL.
In the petition, Yogamaya MG sought directives for the Central government to provide an expedited date for implementing the Women’s Reservation Bill 2023.
The plea addressed the prolonged uncertainty surrounding the delimitation process and named the Election Commission of India (ECI), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Indian National Congress (INC), and other major political parties as respondents.
The petitioner requested the ECI to solicit responses from these parties regarding their plans for implementing the bill.
The petitioner argued that despite the unanimous passage of the bill in Parliament, uncertainty persisted about its implementation timeline.
The plea emphasized that the Act’s provisions were contingent on the completion of a delimitation exercise based on the first census after the commencement of the Constitution (128th Amendment) Act, 2023. Consequently, the petitioner urged the Court to issue directions for the Act’s swifter implementation.