Feminist alliance demands 33% women's quota at current Parliamentary strength

By A Representative 

The All-India Feminist Alliance (ALIFA) has joined the national campaign for the immediate and unconditional implementation of the Women's Reservation Act, 2023, calling on the government to introduce a constitutional amendment in the upcoming monsoon session of Parliament to delink the quota from the census and delimitation processes. 

The alliance, in a statement asserted that the 33 per cent reservation must be implemented at the current strength of Parliament and State Legislatures from the next round of elections, and warned that any attempt by the government to weaponise women's reservations to pursue an anti-federal agenda through Lok Sabha seat expansion would be met with strong opposition from democratic and secular forces, including feminist movements .

The statement noted that women have already waited for more than four decades since the first Women's Reservation Bill was introduced in the early 1980s, and that the constitutional right granted in 2023 remained "unjustly suspended for three years" because the Act was tied to unnecessary conditions. ALIFA contended that the government's attempt in April 2026 to pursue Lok Sabha seat expansion through a Special Session was a blatant pursuit of political ambitions, which it said was "shooting from the shoulders of women."

The alliance stressed that implementing women's reservations has "nothing to do with Census and Delimitation" and that the time for Parliament to pass the Constitutional Amendment for delinking is "NOW" .

The feminist alliance framed women's political representation as a democratic right grounded in the constitutional promise of equality, dignity and justice, pointing out that in the absence of reservation, the highest percentage of women representatives ever in the Indian Parliament has been only 14.4 per cent, with figures even more abysmal across state assemblies at 10 per cent. 

"Democracy loses claim to legitimacy when half the population remains structurally excluded from institutions where political power is exercised, laws are made and the future path of the country is decided," the statement said, adding that federalism is a foundational constitutional principle that safeguards India's diversity and regional autonomy. ALIFA demanded that 33 per cent of seats be allocated based on the current states' seat share in Parliament to ensure that less populous and southern states are not discriminated against.

The statement also emphasised that the feminist movement has never conceptualised representation as an issue of numbers alone, but rather as a means to transform the character of political power itself. 

"Feminist politics resists authoritarianism that relies on centralized power, patriarchy, casteism, majoritarian nationalism and the suppression of dissent," the alliance said, reiterating that the struggle for women's representation is inseparable from struggles against caste oppression, communalism, economic dispossession and authoritarianism. 

ALIFA called for the identification of reserved constituencies in a transparent, participatory manner accountable to women, transgender persons and non-binary persons, and for safeguards against elite capture and proxy representation.

Accordingly, ALIFA called upon Parliament, political parties and all democratic institutions to implement the Women's Reservation Act by introducing a constitutional amendment bill in the upcoming monsoon session to delink its operation from the census and delimitation, and to ensure immediate implementation of 33 per cent women's quota across Parliament and State Assemblies at their current strength in all future elections. 

The alliance further demanded that states' rights be recognised to strengthen India's federal compact, and that structural inequalities in access to political power be addressed, specifically for women from historically disadvantaged communities including Dalit, Adivasi, OBC, Muslim, Christian communities, transgender and non-binary persons, LGBTIQIA+ communities and Women with Disabilities. 

ALIFA also called for transparent, participatory and accountable mechanisms for identifying reserved constituencies through State-level commissions, with representatives from Opposition parties and inclusion of at least 33 per cent women, transgender and non-binary members.

The statement was endorsed by 50 signatories from across the country, including human rights lawyers, feminist activists, academics, journalists and representatives from various movements and organisations. The All-India Feminist Alliance (ALIFA-NAPM) described itself as a non-partisan, pan-India network of feminist organisations and individuals committed to gender justice, constitutional and democratic rights.