The Supreme Court of India has refused to hear a petition demanding 33% reservation for women in the Rajya Sabha, similar to the Lok Sabha.
Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjeev Khanna, leading the bench, directed a different bench to hear the matter and set the date for April 28.
Supreme Court Sends Matter To Bench Headed By Justice Bela Trivedi
During the hearing, CJI Khanna said that another bench had already heard the issue of reservation in the Lok Sabha and Legislative Assembly.
Therefore, the court decided to list the current petition before the bench headed by Justice Bela Trivedi on April 28, 2025.
Earlier, Justice Bela Trivedi’s bench had dismissed a petition concerning women’s reservation in the Lok Sabha on technical grounds in January 2025.
The court had rejected the petition, stating that it did not consider petitions under Article 32 of the Constitution, which were related to issues already addressed by legislation.
Supreme Court Dismissed Previous Petition Over Technical Grounds
Dr. Jaya Thakur, a Congress leader from Madhya Pradesh, and the National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) filed the petition regarding the reservation of 33% seats for women in the Lok Sabha.
The bench of Justice Bela Trivedi and Justice PB Varale had dismissed the petition, stating that it had no jurisdiction to hear it.
The petitioners challenged the bill that had already become law, arguing for the implementation of 33% women’s reservation in Parliament and state assemblies.
The court noted that earlier proposals for similar reservations did not get implemented.
Reservation Law And Delimitation Process
The court emphasized that the implementation of reservations for women in Parliament and state assemblies will take effect only after the completion of the delimitation process.
The delimitation process, which involves conducting a fresh census and redrawing electoral boundaries, is a prerequisite for the implementation of this law.
The Parliament passed the Nari Shakti Bandhan Act during a special session in 2023, which provides for 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and all state assemblies, including Delhi.
However, the pending delimitation and census work will delay the full implementation of the law.
The NFIW, in its petition, had raised concerns about the need for the delimitation process and sought to halt its implementation.
They argued that the central government should consider removing the requirement for census and delimitation before implementing the reservation law.
The Constitution Amendment Bill that provides for this reservation was passed almost unanimously by both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
However, the authorities cannot enforce it yet due to the pending delimitation process, which remains a critical aspect for fully implementing the law.
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