Ahead of a special session on 'Nari Samman', Uttarakhand LoP Yashpal Arya urged the Centre to implement the Women's Reservation Bill, seeking 33% quota for women in the 2027 state assembly elections, reiterating the Congress party's support.

Leader of Opposition in the Uttarakhand Assembly and Congress leader Yashpal Arya on Tuesday underscored the need for greater representation of women in legislatures ahead of the one-day special session convened by the state government on 'Nari Samman, Loktantra Mein Adhikar.'

Congress Demands Women's Quota in 2027 Uttarakhand Polls

Speaking to ANI, Arya highlighted the significance of the Women's Reservation Bill and reiterated his party's support for its implementation. "In 2023, the Women's Reservation Bill was passed, advocating for 33% reservation for women in both the Lok Sabha and state legislatures. Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, have unanimously supported this bill...," he said.

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Arya further stated, "We want the same for the coming Uttarakhand Assembly elections in 2027, but the central government is delaying the implementation of the bill..."

Special Session on 'Nari Samman'

The special session will focus on a discussion titled 'Nari Samman, Loktantra mein Adhikar,' with strict security arrangements put in place in and around the Assembly premises for the proceedings.

Background: Defeated Bill in Lok Sabha

The special session comes in the backdrop of national-level discussions on the Constitution Amendment Bill related to women's reservation, which was taken up in the Lok Sabha on April 17.

The Lok Sabha took up the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-first Amendment) Bill, the Delimitation Bill, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill together for passing. In the division that took place on the Constitution Amendment Bill following the debate on the three bills, 298 members voted in favour and 230 against. With the Constitution Amendment Bill defeated, the government later said it did not want to pursue the two other linked bills.

The bills aimed to increase the strength of the Lok Sabha from 543 to 816, with 33 per cent reservation for women. The delimitation was to be carried out based on the 2011 census. The government said there will be a proportionate increase in seats for all states. Opposition parties said that they are strongly in favour of women's reservation but were against the Delimitation Bill. They called upon the government to implement the women's reservation in the existing strength of the Lok Sabha.

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