SC to hear plea seeking implementation of Women Reservation Bill on Nov 22

The Supreme Court has listed a plea for hearing on November 22, 2023, seeking immediate implementation of the Women's Reservation Bill before the 2024 general elections

A bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti listed the matter for hearing on November 22.

Senior Advocate Vikas Singh for the petitioner, said that a census is not needed. However, the court said that there are many other issues that have to be addressed. The court also refused to issue any notice on the plea at this stage and asked the petitioner to serve the copy to the other side.

The plea has been filed by Jaya Thakur through advocates Varun Thakur and Varinder Kumar Sharma.

The petitioner has sought direction to declare the clog, i.e., "after the delimitation is undertaken for this purposes after the relevant figures for the first census of the "Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty Eight Amendment) Bill 2023 (Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam) as "void-ab-initio" for immediate implementation of the 33 per cent Women Reservation, as per the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty Eight Amendment) Bill 2023 (Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam) in its true letter and spirit before Parliamentary General Election 2024.

The petitioner said that in the democratic process, all corners of society's representation is required, but for the last 75 years, there has been no adequate representation of women in the parliament as well as in the state legislature.

"This is the long-pending demand from the decades and the parliament rightly passed the above act for the 33 per cent reservation but putting the clog that the said act will be implemented "after the delimitation is undertaken for these purposes after the relevant figures for the first census" which may kindly be declared "void-ab-initio", for immediate implementation of the 33 per cent women's reservation," the petitioner said further.

She also said that the constitutional amendment cannot be held for an uncertain period.

"In fact, this amendment special session was called for implementing the reservation in Parliament as well as in the State Legislature and both houses passed this bill unanimously and the President of India also gave assent. Subsequently, the Act was notified on September 28, 2023, but despite the publication, the object of the Act cannot be withheld for an uncertain period," the petitioner said.

Regarding this aspect, there is a settled proposition of law that there is always a presumption in regard to the constitutional validity of enactment that unless the amendment and enactment are declared ultra-vires of the Constitution, their effect and operation cannot be stayed, as per the law settled by Court in the case of "Bhavesh D. Parish and others vs. Union of India and another," the petitioner said.

The petitioner has sought to declare clog 1.g. "after the delimitation is undertaken for these purposes after the relevant figures for the first census" of "The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eight Amendment) Bill 2023 (Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam) as "void-ab-initio".

The petitioner also sought to issue appropriate direction to the Respondent to implement "The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eight Amendment) Bill 2023 (Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam) in its true letter and spirit before the general election of 2024.