A LANDMARK law that would reserve a third of all seats in India’s parliament for women cleared its first hurdle yesterday when members of the upper house approved it after a rancorous debate.

The bill won the backing of 186 of the 248 members of the upper Rajya Sabha chamber, more than the two-thirds majority needed for the draft legislation which would result in a constitutional change.

“The bill is a historic step, joyous step forward,” said Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. “It is celebration of our womanhood. This is a momentous development in the long journey of empowering women.”

Women currently occupy 59 seats out of 545 in the lower house and just 21 women in the 248-seat upper house.

An attempt to pass the legislation was first made in 1996 and it has been consistently blocked since by various political groups demanding quotas for women from Muslim and low-caste communities.

Communists and the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) united behind the left-leaning ruling Congress party, which faced virulent and occasionally unruly resistance from regional socialist parties.

The bill was again tabled on Monday (March 8), International Women’s Day, but the socialists forced repeated adjournments and at one point ripped up the law, threw shreds of paper at the speaker and grabbed his microphone.

Seven members, who say the bill will lead to high-caste women monopolising the reserved seats, were suspended over the uproar. A parliamentary security team was deployed to keep order yesterday.

The bill will now pass to the lower house of parliament and state assembles, where a third of seats will also be reserved for women. If it clears these two stages, it will then require presidential consent.

“The law should go through,” said political analyst Rasheed Kidwai, who said the ruling party and its allies had majorities in the lower house and enough state assemblies to see a successful conclusion.

Brinda Karat, leader of Communist Party of India (Marxist), termed the bill a “ground-breaking” piece of legislation.

“The legislation ensures the idea of inclusion is transformed from rhetoric to guarantees,” she said, adding that 33 per cent would be enough to influence policy and decision-making.

Politics in India has traditionally been a male bastion, but women now hold prominent positions, including President Pratibha Patil and Sonia Gandhi. India has had one female prime minister, Indira Gandhi.

Women’s rights groups were delighted with the news.

“Male politicians will soon have to make way for a fresh female energy to run the country,” said Mrinalini Das, an activist based in New Delhi.

“Today, I can say India is changing for good,” she said.