Is delimitation bill timing a BJP bid to raid Mamata's Lakshmir Bhandar?
The BJP-led Centre's push to add extra seats in Parliament is pivoted on reserving 33% of the seats for women. But the timing of the special session of Parliament for introducing the bills coincides with elections in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. Is it the BJP's bid to raid the Trinamool's Lakshmir Bhandar of women voters?
'Why now' is the most important question one can ask when it comes to politics and policy. The same question comes up on the bills the government is tabling in Parliament. Why is it bringing the bill on Delimitation, pivoting it on the women's reservation bill, at this very moment? Just days from now, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu will be voting to elect their state governments. The Delimitation bill has provided oxygen to the DMK in Tamil Nadu, where the BJP is mostly written off by experts. But does the timing of the Delimitation bill, which the BJP has directly associated with women's reservation in Parliament and state Assemblies, have a West Bengal election connection?
We all know that electoral battles are also shaped in the corridors of power. That is the reason why the Modi government's decision to convene a special session of Parliament to bring the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam or the women's quota bill, coinciding with the elections in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal is being seen through a political lens.
The BJP-led Centre's move is being seen not merely as legislative urgency, but as a calculated move to woo women voters, a segment that has long been a stronghold of Mamata Banerjee and which the BJP has tried to cultivate over the years.
Political experts believe that the BJP has little or nothing to gain from the move in Tamil Nadu, whereas it could be a gamble for West Bengal. Senior journalist and political commentator Neerja Chowdhury, in her weekly column in The Indian Express, suggested that the "women's quota bill being pushed by the BJP shows how high the stakes are for the BJP in West Bengal".
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his first election rally address in West Bengal on April 5, highlighted the Centre's push to operationalise the 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies. He said this would start benefiting them from the 2029 parliamentary polls.
Modi also invoked Bengal's tradition of "Shakti" worship, citing the Sandeshkhali outrage and projecting the BJP as the guarantor of "security, dignity, and empowerment" for women.
The Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool government in West Bengal has launched several welfare schemes aimed at women and girls. They range from direct financial assistance to education support, marriage aid, health coverage, and livelihood opportunities. These schemes, particularly the flagship Lakshmir Bhandar, have been viewed as the reason of solid support from women for the Trinamool Congress.
The Trinamool Congress is also among the top parties to field women candidates for the 2026 Assembly election. It has given tickets to 52 women candidates (294 seats), making it around 20% of the total contestants. In the BJP's case, it is 11%.
In the current Lok Sabha, the Trinamool Congress has 11 women MPs, which is around 38% of its 29 total MPs. This makes the Mamata Banerjee-led party to have the highest percentage of women Lok Sabha MPs among major political parties.
WHY WAS BJP-LED CENTRE IN HURRY TO INTRODUCE THE WOMEN'S RESERVATION BILL?
So, the BJP is most likely trying to use the Delimitation bill, which its leaders, including PM Modi, have pitched the reserving of seats for women as a counter to the Trinamool in the West Bengal Assembly election.
The BJP must have been aware that any discussion on Delimitation would spark protests in the southern states, with the pitch shrillest in Tamil Nadu, which is headed for the polls. Neerja Chowdhury has said this move of the Central government may have a ground-level resonance in the south.
The BJP-led Centre could have waited for the elections to be over, but instead, it rushed to Parliament with the three bills, which it says are intended to give 33% reservation to women in the Lok Sabha and state legislatures. So, the move must have been with an eye on West Bengal.
Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal and Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday introduced the three key bills in the Lok Sabha aimed at amending the women’s reservation law and establishing a Delimitation Commission. A bill to amend the women’s quota law (106th Amendment Act, 2023) was also introduced.
The central government has stated that its goal is to have the women's reservation operational for the 2029 general elections and corresponding state Assembly polls, and it is using the 2011 Census as the basis (instead of waiting for the current Census) to enable earlier delimitation.
CAN THE BJP DAMAGE MAMATA BANERJEE IN BENGAL POLLS WITH WOMEN'S QUOTA BILL?
A three-day special session of Parliament, beginning Thursday, is being held to operationalise the Women's Reservation Bill, and many opposition leaders have questioned the timing of the session.
Communist Party of India (CPI) General Secretary D Raja alleged that the BJP was trying to deceive the people to take advantage in view of the upcoming Assembly elections in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.
In Tamil Nadu, the BJP is not the principal opposition and is only a mere alliance partner of the AIADMK. The issue of Delimitation has become a major political issue for the ruling DMK ahead of the Tamil Nadu election. The BJP had earlier witnessed the backlash on the issue of delimitation for the southern states. Even after realising this, why is the BJP pushing for the Women's Quota Bill and the delimitation?
Neerja Chowdhury says that the logic behind the timing of the session is hard to comprehend. But she suggests that even after not having a two-thirds majority in both the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha to pass the tabled bills, convening the special session showcases the importance of West Bengal polls for the BJP.
The "women factor" has been a consistent and decisive element in Mamata Banerjee's electoral victories in West Bengal, particularly in the 2011, 2016, and 2021 Assembly elections.
According to the Lokniti-CSDS post-poll survey, in the 2021 Assembly polls, among the women voters, support for Mamata's TMC touched 50%. The survey also revealed that the TMC polled 13% more women's votes than the BJP.
Similar trends were witnessed in the 2016 West Bengal Assembly election. The TMC dominated the women's votes and had 12% more women's support than the Left and Congress alliance.
West Bengal is one of the states that witnesses high women voter turnout in the country. According to the document released by the West Bengal CEO on the 2024 general elections, the state witnessed a female voter turnout of nearly 82%, while the male voter turnout was 78%. The TMC won 29 Lok Sabha seats out of the total 42 seats in the state. Women have played a significant role in every election in Bengal. The BJP has now become the principal opposition – sidelining the Left and the Congress – and is trying to damage the strongest voter base of Mamata Banerjee.
TMC won 213 seats in the 2021 Assembly election with a vote share of 48%. The BJP could only get 77 seats and a 39% vote share. There is a clear 9% vote share difference between the TMC and the BJP.
The BJP and its allies have been able to successfully woo voters in Assam, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, with women-focused schemes like Orunodoi, Mahila Rozgar Yojana, Ladli Behna, and Ladki Bahin, respectively. In all these states, the NDA was in power and could offer these financial schemes. But in Bengal, it is in opposition, and the best it can do is offer a promise. The Delimitation Bill, pivoted on the reservation of 33% seats in Parliament and Assemblies, is that promise. Whether it plays a role in swinging Bengal's election will have to be seen. But the timing points to the fact that the BJP is trying to raid Trinamool's Lakshmir Bhandar.
'Why now' is the most important question one can ask when it comes to politics and policy. The same question comes up on the bills the government is tabling in Parliament. Why is it bringing the bill on Delimitation, pivoting it on the women's reservation bill, at this very moment? Just days from now, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu will be voting to elect their state governments. The Delimitation bill has provided oxygen to the DMK in Tamil Nadu, where the BJP is mostly written off by experts. But does the timing of the Delimitation bill, which the BJP has directly associated with women's reservation in Parliament and state Assemblies, have a West Bengal election connection?
We all know that electoral battles are also shaped in the corridors of power. That is the reason why the Modi government's decision to convene a special session of Parliament to bring the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam or the women's quota bill, coinciding with the elections in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal is being seen through a political lens.
The BJP-led Centre's move is being seen not merely as legislative urgency, but as a calculated move to woo women voters, a segment that has long been a stronghold of Mamata Banerjee and which the BJP has tried to cultivate over the years.
Political experts believe that the BJP has little or nothing to gain from the move in Tamil Nadu, whereas it could be a gamble for West Bengal. Senior journalist and political commentator Neerja Chowdhury, in her weekly column in The Indian Express, suggested that the "women's quota bill being pushed by the BJP shows how high the stakes are for the BJP in West Bengal".
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his first election rally address in West Bengal on April 5, highlighted the Centre's push to operationalise the 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies. He said this would start benefiting them from the 2029 parliamentary polls.
Modi also invoked Bengal's tradition of "Shakti" worship, citing the Sandeshkhali outrage and projecting the BJP as the guarantor of "security, dignity, and empowerment" for women.
The Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool government in West Bengal has launched several welfare schemes aimed at women and girls. They range from direct financial assistance to education support, marriage aid, health coverage, and livelihood opportunities. These schemes, particularly the flagship Lakshmir Bhandar, have been viewed as the reason of solid support from women for the Trinamool Congress.
The Trinamool Congress is also among the top parties to field women candidates for the 2026 Assembly election. It has given tickets to 52 women candidates (294 seats), making it around 20% of the total contestants. In the BJP's case, it is 11%.
In the current Lok Sabha, the Trinamool Congress has 11 women MPs, which is around 38% of its 29 total MPs. This makes the Mamata Banerjee-led party to have the highest percentage of women Lok Sabha MPs among major political parties.
WHY WAS BJP-LED CENTRE IN HURRY TO INTRODUCE THE WOMEN'S RESERVATION BILL?
So, the BJP is most likely trying to use the Delimitation bill, which its leaders, including PM Modi, have pitched the reserving of seats for women as a counter to the Trinamool in the West Bengal Assembly election.
The BJP must have been aware that any discussion on Delimitation would spark protests in the southern states, with the pitch shrillest in Tamil Nadu, which is headed for the polls. Neerja Chowdhury has said this move of the Central government may have a ground-level resonance in the south.
The BJP-led Centre could have waited for the elections to be over, but instead, it rushed to Parliament with the three bills, which it says are intended to give 33% reservation to women in the Lok Sabha and state legislatures. So, the move must have been with an eye on West Bengal.
Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal and Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday introduced the three key bills in the Lok Sabha aimed at amending the women’s reservation law and establishing a Delimitation Commission. A bill to amend the women’s quota law (106th Amendment Act, 2023) was also introduced.
The central government has stated that its goal is to have the women's reservation operational for the 2029 general elections and corresponding state Assembly polls, and it is using the 2011 Census as the basis (instead of waiting for the current Census) to enable earlier delimitation.
CAN THE BJP DAMAGE MAMATA BANERJEE IN BENGAL POLLS WITH WOMEN'S QUOTA BILL?
A three-day special session of Parliament, beginning Thursday, is being held to operationalise the Women's Reservation Bill, and many opposition leaders have questioned the timing of the session.
Communist Party of India (CPI) General Secretary D Raja alleged that the BJP was trying to deceive the people to take advantage in view of the upcoming Assembly elections in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.
In Tamil Nadu, the BJP is not the principal opposition and is only a mere alliance partner of the AIADMK. The issue of Delimitation has become a major political issue for the ruling DMK ahead of the Tamil Nadu election. The BJP had earlier witnessed the backlash on the issue of delimitation for the southern states. Even after realising this, why is the BJP pushing for the Women's Quota Bill and the delimitation?
Neerja Chowdhury says that the logic behind the timing of the session is hard to comprehend. But she suggests that even after not having a two-thirds majority in both the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha to pass the tabled bills, convening the special session showcases the importance of West Bengal polls for the BJP.
The "women factor" has been a consistent and decisive element in Mamata Banerjee's electoral victories in West Bengal, particularly in the 2011, 2016, and 2021 Assembly elections.
According to the Lokniti-CSDS post-poll survey, in the 2021 Assembly polls, among the women voters, support for Mamata's TMC touched 50%. The survey also revealed that the TMC polled 13% more women's votes than the BJP.
Similar trends were witnessed in the 2016 West Bengal Assembly election. The TMC dominated the women's votes and had 12% more women's support than the Left and Congress alliance.
West Bengal is one of the states that witnesses high women voter turnout in the country. According to the document released by the West Bengal CEO on the 2024 general elections, the state witnessed a female voter turnout of nearly 82%, while the male voter turnout was 78%. The TMC won 29 Lok Sabha seats out of the total 42 seats in the state. Women have played a significant role in every election in Bengal. The BJP has now become the principal opposition – sidelining the Left and the Congress – and is trying to damage the strongest voter base of Mamata Banerjee.
TMC won 213 seats in the 2021 Assembly election with a vote share of 48%. The BJP could only get 77 seats and a 39% vote share. There is a clear 9% vote share difference between the TMC and the BJP.
The BJP and its allies have been able to successfully woo voters in Assam, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, with women-focused schemes like Orunodoi, Mahila Rozgar Yojana, Ladli Behna, and Ladki Bahin, respectively. In all these states, the NDA was in power and could offer these financial schemes. But in Bengal, it is in opposition, and the best it can do is offer a promise. The Delimitation Bill, pivoted on the reservation of 33% seats in Parliament and Assemblies, is that promise. Whether it plays a role in swinging Bengal's election will have to be seen. But the timing points to the fact that the BJP is trying to raid Trinamool's Lakshmir Bhandar.
