'2023 Women's Reservation Act In Effect From April 16': Centre As Parliament Debates Amendments

Amid a fierce debate during a special session of Parliament on the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill to tweak the women’s reservation law, the Centre on Thursday notified the 2023 Act stating that it is in effect from April 16, 2026. 

The central government issued the notification bringing the Women’s Reservation Act, 2023, into effect from April 16, 2026 – three years after it was passed – but

Parliament is debating the matter late into the night and will vote on the proposed changes tomorrow.

According to the notification from the law ministry, the Act gives 33 percent quota to women in legislatures and has came into force from April 16, 2026. It is, however, not immediately known why it has been notified when Parliament is debating to amend

it for its implementation in 2029.

The notification read: “In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of section 1 of the Constitution (One Hundred and Sixth Amendment) Act, 2023, the Central Government hereby appoints the 16th day of April, 2026 as the date on which the provisions of the said Act shall come into force.”

In September 2023, Parliament passed the ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’, commonly known as the Women’s Reservation Act, in a significant step towards enhancing women’s representation in legislative bodies. The act provided for the reservation of one-third of seats for women in Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies. Under it, the reservation will not become enforceable before 2034, as it was tied to the completion of the delimitation exercise post 2027 Census.

The three bills presently being debated in Lok Sabha were brought in by the government so that the women quota could be implemented in 2029. Officials, meanwhile, said though the act has come into force, the reservation cannot be implemented in the current House as it can be implemented after carrying out a delimitation exercise on the basis of the next census.

This curious turn of events, however, did not go unnoticed and the Congress was quick to raise questions over it. The party’s general secretary Jairam Ramesh shared a copy of the gazette notification on X, calling the timing of the notification “absolutely bizarre”.

This is absolutely bizarre. The Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam passed in September 2023 has come into force today while amendments to it are being debated and will be voted upon tomorrow. Completely puzzled. pic.twitter.com/8d9y2bAGmV

— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) April 16, 2026

While the government has notified the law, a significant obstacle remains: its implementation is currently contingent on the next Census and the delimitation exercise, effectively pushing it into the future. Hence, the government is now seeking to scrap this linkage to ensure the reservation is rolled out in time for the 2029 Lok Sabha elections.

(With agency inputs)