Prelims 2021 · Q42
MediumConsider the following statements:
- 1.The Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms of 1919 recommended granting voting rights to all the women above the age of 21.
- 2.The Government of India Act of 1935 gave women reserved seats in legislature.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (b) 2 only
Only statement 2 is correct. The 1935 Act reserved seats for women in provincial legislatures. The 1919 Act did not give all women over 21 the vote: it let the provincial councils decide who could vote, and the franchise stayed tied to property qualifications.
- ✗ 1. Under the 1919 Act women could not vote in elections to the Council of State, and the provincial councils could decide on their vote by resolution; the franchise also depended on property qualifications that varied by province. There was no vote for all women above 21.
- ✓ 2. The Government of India Act, 1935 gave women 41 reserved seats in the provincial legislatures, with restricted reservations in the federal legislature, and widened the vote to more women.
Remember · 1919: women's vote left to provincial councils, property-based. 1935: more women voters and reserved seats (41 in provincial legislatures). Universal adult franchise came only with the Constitution (1950).
Sources
- Rajya Sabha Secretariat, Rajya Sabha at Work, Ch 1 (origin and history) ↗ “Women are not entitled to vote at elections to the Council of State, or to offer themselves for election, though it is in the power of the Council of State to pass a resolution which would remove both these barriers.”
- Government gazetteer chapter — Public Life and Voluntary Social Service Organisations (s3waas.gov.in) ↗ “The franchise of Legislative Assembly was also based on property qualification and varied from province to province.”
- Patna High Court — Gender Equality and Women Empowerment: a critical perspective (women's reservation in India) ↗ “The Government of India Act of 1935 extended their dedication to group-based politics by granting women 41 reserved seats in provincial legislatures and restricted reservations in federal legislatures.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2021, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·