“एक वर्ग के रूप में महिलाएँ न तो किसी अल्पसंख्यक समूह का अंग हैं और न ही वे पिछड़ा वर्ग बनाती मानी जाती हैं ।” इस कथन के प्रकाश में, स्थानीय निकायों से संसद तक में महिला आरक्षण के क्रमिक विकास की विवेचना कीजिए ।
Read this question in English
“Women as a class neither belong to a minority group nor are they regarded as forming a backward class.” In the light of this statement, discuss the evolution of women’s reservation from local bodies to Parliament.
🧭 How to think about this question · directive: “discuss”
Decode the demand
- Directive 'discuss' with a given lens: the quoted line fixes the angle. First show why women's reservation stands on a footing different from minority and backward-class quotas, then trace its journey from panchayats to Parliament.
- The issue in one line: women are half the citizenry, cut across every caste and religion, yet are nearly absent from legislatures; reservation answers under-representation, not backwardness.
- Two things to answer: the constitutional basis (Article 15(3), horizontal reservation, democratic deficit) and the evolution (73rd and 74th Amendments, state experiments, lapsed Bills, the 106th Amendment).
- The trap: writing a history of the Women's Reservation Bill and ignoring the quotation. Every point in the first half must return to 'neither minority nor backward class'.
Think in a structure
- Open with the representation gap in one verified number, then one line that answers the quotation directly.
- First heading: a small table contrasting the three bases (minority, backward class, women), then points on Article 15(3), horizontal reservation and the democratic deficit, each with a case or figure as a sub-point.
- Second heading: a timeline from 1992 to 2023, then one point per stage with Articles and numbers; note the deferred start honestly.
- End positively: three concrete steps a policymaker can take, then anchor the conclusion in the Preamble's promise of equality of status and opportunity.
Facts checked at source (5)· open
- Women members rose from 22 in the First Lok Sabha to 75 in the 18th Lok Sabha, about 14% of the House (PIB).Government is promoting greater participation of women in local governance and political leadership roles - PIB ↗“The total number of elected women members, which was 22 in the First Lok Sabha and 27 in the Second Lok Sabha has increased to 78 in the 17 th Lok Sabha and to 75 in the 18 th Lok Sabha (which is approximately 14% of the total members).”
- About 14.5 lakh Elected Women Representatives form about 46% of PRI representatives; 21 States provide 50% reservation for women in PRIs (PIB).Government is promoting greater participation of women in local governance and political leadership roles - PIB ↗“the country has about 14.5 lakh Elected Women Representatives (EWRs) in Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs), which is about 46% of the total elected representatives, unparalleled in the world. There are 21 States in the country who have made provision for 50% reservation for women in PRIs”
- The Constitution (106th Amendment) Act, 2023 is officially the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, giving one-third reservation to women.Government is promoting greater participation of women in local governance and political leadership roles - PIB ↗“In 2023, Parliament of India passed the Constitution (One Hundred and Sixth Amendment) Act, 2023, “Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam”, marking a historic milestone”
- Capacity building of panchayat stakeholders, including Elected Women Representatives, is conducted to help them participate effectively in governance.Women empowerment - PIB, written reply in Lok Sabha ↗“Capacity Building of Panchayat Stakeholders including Elected Women Representatives is conducted with a view to empowering women to participate effectively in the governance processes.”
- SDG target 16.7: responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels.Goal 16: Peace, justice and strong institutions - UN Sustainable Development Goals ↗“Target 16.7 Ensure responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2026, GS Paper II — paper ↗. Guidance: Minimalist IAS, checked 8 Nov 2026 (how we verify). ·
Model answer· 379words · Minimalist IAS
Women are half the citizenry and cut across every caste and religion, yet hold only 75 seats, about 14%, in the 18th Lok Sabha (PIB). Their reservation therefore answers under-representation, not minority or backward-class status.
| Basis | Provision | Test |
|---|---|---|
| Minority | Articles 29–30 | Religion or language |
| Backward class | Articles 15(4), 16(4) | Social and educational backwardness |
| Women | Article 15(3) | Sex-based disadvantage, under-representation |
Why the claim rests on neither ground
- Separate enabling clause: Article 15(3) lets the State make special provisions for women without any backwardness test.
- Government of A.P. v. P.B. Vijayakumar (1995): Article 15(3) permits reservation for women even in public employment.
- Horizontal, not vertical: women's seats cut across SC, ST and general categories, unlike caste-based vertical quotas.
- Indra Sawhney (1992) treated women's reservation as horizontal, the model the 106th Amendment follows.
- Democratic deficit: the remedy fills an absence from decision-making, a question of representation, not of social hierarchy.
- Only 22 women sat in the First Lok Sabha; 75 sit in the 18th (PIB).
Evolution from local bodies to Parliament
- 1992: 73rd, 74th Amendments
- 1996: first Bill
- 2010: Rajya Sabha passes Bill
- 2023: 106th Amendment
- Local bodies first: the 73rd and 74th Amendments reserved one-third of seats and chairpersons' posts (Articles 243D, 243T).
- Dattatraya Motiram More (1953): Bombay High Court upheld women's reserved municipal seats under Article 15(3).
- States went further: 21 States give 50% in panchayats; 14.5 lakh women form 46% of elected representatives (PIB).
- Long road: Bills from 1996 lapsed; the 2008 Bill passed the Rajya Sabha in 2010 but died in the Lok Sabha.
- Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam (106th Amendment, 2023): one-third of seats in the Lok Sabha, State assemblies and Delhi (Articles 330A, 332A, 334A) for 15 years.
- Deferred start: it operates only after delimitation following the next census; an OBC sub-quota remains contested.
Way forward
- Delimitation without delay: notify the census and delimitation timeline so the quota reaches the next election.
- From proxies to leaders: extend panchayat-style capacity building of Elected Women Representatives to new legislators (PIB).
- Rotation with care: fix rotation of reserved seats to let women build constituencies, a lesson from panchayats.
Panchayats showed that reserved seats grow leaders; the 106th Amendment can carry that lesson to Parliament and give the Preamble's equality of status and of opportunity a visible face in the House.
Prepared by Minimalist IAS to the answer standard of Shivam Singh (mentor, 7 years) · facts checked against official sources (how we verify) · updated 8 Nov 2026. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.
