Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Friday mounted a strong attack on the Centre in the Lok Sabha, warning that linking women’s reservation to delimitation could trigger a major political disruption, comparing the move to the chaos caused by demonetisation in 2016.
Speaking during a debate on amendments related to the Women’s Reservation Act, Tharoor said the government was unnecessarily complicating a reform that already enjoys broad political support by attaching it to the politically sensitive exercise of delimitation.
Tharoor Says Women’s Reservation Is Being Delayed
Tharoor argued that there is broad agreement across political parties on the need to provide reservation for women, but said the Centre’s current plan effectively delays implementation by making it dependent on delimitation and parliamentary seat expansion.
He accused the government of turning a long-pending reform into a political issue by making women’s reservation conditional on future processes that may take years to complete.
According to him, this approach amounts to keeping the aspirations of Indian women on hold despite the political will to move ahead.
Questions Linking Quota to Census and Delimitation
The Congress MP questioned why a measure aimed at women’s empowerment was being linked to multiple structural exercises, including the 2011 Census data, future delimitation, and the expansion of Parliament.
He said the women’s quota was ready for implementation and should not be tied to what he described as a politically risky and administratively complex process.
Tharoor argued that combining a social justice reform with demographic calculations could create unnecessary uncertainty around a law that should have been implemented directly.
Warns of Major Political Consequences
Tharoor cautioned that delimitation is far more than an administrative exercise and has the potential to significantly alter the political balance between states.
He warned that the process could have serious implications for India’s federal structure, especially if it changes representation based on population shifts.
According to him, such a move could create political tensions between states and affect the balance of power in Parliament.
Compares Delimitation Push to Demonetisation
In one of the sharpest moments of the debate, Tharoor compared the Centre’s urgency on delimitation to the hurried rollout of demonetisation in 2016.
He said that just as demonetisation caused economic disruption, delimitation carried out without careful planning could lead to political instability.
Warning the government against rushing the process, he said delimitation could become “political demonetisation” if implemented without consensus.
Debate Linked to New Bills in Parliament
Tharoor’s remarks came during debate on a set of bills introduced in the Lok Sabha to operationalise the Women’s Reservation Act before the 2029 elections.
The proposed laws include:
- The Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill
- The Delimitation Bill
- The Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill
These measures are intended to create the legal and structural framework required for implementing the women’s quota in Parliament and assemblies.
