NDA short of numbers to pass women quota bill in Parliament
The NDA lacks the required two-thirds majority in Parliament to pass the women’s reservation bills, making Opposition support or abstentions crucial. The numbers in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha indicate a tight situation for the government
New Delhi: 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 ensure some abstentions.
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 seven 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 amounts 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 among 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 JD(U) 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.
In the Rajya Sabha, the NDA has 141 members in its favour, which is 58 per cent of the Upper House, and the Opposition has 83 MPs in support.
Parties such as the BRS, YSRCP, BJD and BSP, along with independents, have 20 MPs in the Upper House and their votes may help swing the decision.
For the Constitution amendment bill to get through in the Upper House, the ruling alliance needs the support of 163 MPs present and voting, which is a two-thirds majority of the House.
While the BJP has 107 MPs in the Rajya Sabha, the Congress has 28, TMC 13, AAP 10 and DMK 8.
Sources said several BJP MPs have admitted privately that they do not have the numbers to get the key bills passed.
Amending the Constitution requires a special majority in both Houses of Parliament: a majority of the total membership (more than 50 per cent) and a two-thirds majority of members present and voting. So, if all 540 members in the House currently are present and voting, the two-thirds majority mark would be 360. While seeking the support of all parties in getting the bills passed, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a fervent appeal in the Lok Sabha, saying that he will get all the credit in case the Opposition opposes the bills but is ready to give a “blank cheque” to all if everyone supports the legislation.
The Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill to tweak the women’s quota law was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Thursday after a division of votes.
Two ordinary bills — the Delimitation Bill and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill to implement the proposed amended women’s quota law in Union territories of Delhi, Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir — were also introduced.
The bills were introduced in the Lok Sabha after a fiery 40-minute debate, following which the Opposition pressed for a division of votes to introduce the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill.
The bill was later introduced with 251 members supporting it and 185 members voting against the introduction.
