'Where There's Will...': Amit Shah Hails Modi After Women's Reservation Bill Clears Parliament

New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi after Parliament cleared the Women's Reservation Bill and called it "historic milestone". Shah also lauded PM Modi for sending a powerful message of gender equality and inclusive governance across the world.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Shah wrote," Where there is a will there is a way. A historic milestone was achieved today on the path of equitable governance as the Rajya Sabha passed the women's reservation Bill. By fulfilling a long-pending demand, PM Narendra Modi Ji has sent a powerful message of gender equality and inclusive governance across the world. My heartfelt gratitude to Modi-ji and congratulations to every citizen."

Rajya Sabha passed the Women’s Reservation Bill or Nari Shakti Vandan Adhniyam, unanimously with 214 members voting in support and none against the bill, a day after it given green flag in the Lok Sabha. The bill grants 33 per cent reservation to women in Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies. But, the bill would come into effect only after the exercise of the next delimitation. Since delimitation cannot be conducted without the latest data on the population of the country, the bill cannot be implemented at least till the end of 2026 - the year after which the next census is to be carried out.

The text of the women's reservation bill states, "Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provision of this Part or Part VIII, the provisions of the Constitution relating to the reservation of seats for women in the House of the People, the Legislative Assembly of a State and the Legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory of Delhi shall come into effect after an exercise of delimitation is undertaken for this purpose after the relevant figures for the first census taken after commencement of the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-eighth Amendment) Act, 2023 have been published and shall cease to have effect on the expiration of a period of fifteen years from such commencement."