Special Parliament session on Women's Reservation Bill likely, Centre confident of winning: Sources

The Centre is planning to convene a special session of Parliament to secure the passage of a Constitution amendment bill aimed at implementing women's reservation, with sources expressing confidence that it will secure the required two-thirds majority by a margin of 15 to 18 votes, PTI has reported.

Government sources said they were confident of having the necessary numbers but did not reveal the proposed dates or duration of the session. The bill requires 361 votes for passage, with the Lok Sabha currently having 540 members against its sanctioned strength of 543 due to three vacancies.

The proposed amendment seeks to increase the strength of the Lok Sabha from the existing 543 seats to a maximum of 850 through delimitation. This is intended to pave the way for implementing 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament



and state legislative assemblies.

The move comes after a similar Constitution amendment bill failed to secure the required two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha during a special sitting of the Budget Session on April 17.

The possibility of convening Parliament at short notice remains open as the Monsoon Session, which was adjourned sine die on August 13, has not yet been prorogued. The session has remained unprorogued for 91 days, surpassing the previous record of 87 days set in 2008.

An extended sitting of the existing session requires a minimum notice of two days, while a fresh session can be convened with at least 14 days' notice. The government's decision to keep the Monsoon Session unprorogued had fuelled speculation about a possible extended or special sitting to consider the proposed amendment.