Numbers Not in NDA's Favour to Get Women Quota Law Passed in Parliament

The ruling NDA does not have the required numbers in Parliament to get the women's reservation bills passed with a two-thirds majority, unless it can shore up support from other parties or make some of them abstain. 

While the NDA has the support of 293 members in the Lok Sabha, which is 54 per cent of the house, the opposition has 233 MPs. While 7 MPs are independents, seven belong to parties like the YSRCP, AIMIM and Shiromani Akali Dal, which have yet to openly support the bills.

The rules require 360 MPs to



support the bills, including the Constitution amendment bill, which comes to two-thirds of those present and voting.

For the bills to get approval from the Lok Sabha, at least two main opposition parties from amongst the Samajwadi Party (37 MPs), Trinamool Congress (28 MPs) or DMK (22 MPs) would have to abstain. The Congress has 98 MPs in the Lok Sabha. On the other hand, the BJP has 240 MPs, TDP 16 and JDU 12 in the Lok Sabha from the NDA.

In case the bills do not get Lok Sabha nod, they will not be taken up in the Rajya Sabha