NEW DELHI, MAY 9:Rajya Sabha Chairman Mohammad Hamid Ansari has asked the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice to examine the Women’s Reservation Bill and submit its report within three months. Sources said the Committee, headed by Congress Rajya Sabha member E M Sudarsana Natchiappan, is likely to hold its first sitting on the issue on July 27.

Hours after Law Minister H R Bhardwaj had introduced Bill in the Upper House on May 6, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi had said the Bill would be passed in the Monsoon Session while expressing hope that the Committee would complete its work by then. Normally, standing committees complete such an exercise within a span of two to three months. Sometimes, committees do seek an extension — even up to six months — to examine a Bill.

However, this is not an ordinary Bill as not only populist politics of the Congress, BJP and Left parties is linked to it, but also the Congress’ ‘chemistry’ with its allies like the RJD. While the Congress has to match the pro-woman agenda of the BJP — like 33 per cent quota for the fair sex in the party at all levels except in the parliamentary board and central election committee, the RJD has to combat its rival Janata Dal(U) to retain its OBC base in Bihar. Obviously, the Congress has to see that it does not push the RJD beyond a limit while playing the ball with pro-quota national parties.

The BJP has been quick to notice this fault line in the Congress’ game plan. Therefore, the saffron party has maintained from Day One that the Congress is not sincere and has no intention to pass the Bill. The BJP also decided to nominate former Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairperson Najma Heptulla to the standing Committee to effectively articulate the women’s cause. The intention is to build pressure on the Congress to make an earnest forward move. The RJD may have reluctantly allowed the Congress to introduce the Bill, but any attempt to pass it would be a different ball game altogether.

The Committee may have been mandated to just examine the Bill, but needless to say it would be a soundboard of sorts of larger political games in the days to come.

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