One-Third Reservation of State Legislative Assembly Seats for Women
Official heading: “Reservation of seats for women in the Legislative Assemblies of the States”
- Source edition
- The Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2026)
- Source locator
- Part XVI, Article 332A, printed page 191
- Last human source-link check
- Not yet checked
- Last human legal review
- Not yet reviewed
AI-assisted source comparisons are noted with the citations below; the check date remains pending until a human confirms the link. The report link opens your email app; you choose whether to send it.
1. In One Sentence
Reserves one-third of all seats in every State Legislative Assembly for women, including one-third of seats reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
2. What It Means in Everyday Language
Inserted by the Constitution (One Hundred and Sixth Amendment) Act, 2023 (w.e.f. 16 April 2026), Article 332A extends the landmark one-third women’s reservation to all State Legislative Assemblies across India.
Under clause (1), seats are reserved for women in the Legislative Assembly of every State.
Under clause (2), as nearly as may be, one-third of the seats reserved under Article 332 for SCs and STs are sub-reserved specifically for women from those marginalized communities.
Under clause (3), as nearly as may be, one-third of the total direct election seats in the Legislative Assembly (inclusive of SC/ST quotas) are reserved for women.
3. Practical Illustrative Example
In a State Legislative Assembly with 240 seats, delimitation after the first post-commencement census designates 80 constituencies where only female candidates may contest.
4. Important Limits, Qualifications & Exceptions
Article 332A mandates female political representation across all 28 State Assemblies.
- Universal state coverage: Applies across all State Legislative Assemblies in India.
- Sub-quota protection: Guarantees that SC and ST women receive at least one-third of the seats allotted to their respective communities.
- Operational linkage: Tied to Article 334A for delimitation timing and its initial 15-year statutory period.
5. Operative Constitutional Text
6. Sources & Historical Assembly Deliberations
Assembly quotations are withheld until wording, dates, and attribution have been checked against the primary record.
- •Government of India (Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice) • Part XVI, Article 332A, printed page 191 • Human source-link check pending
Primary PDF accessed and transcribed with AI assistance on 14 October 2026. Formatting and amendment annotation markers are omitted; operative wording is retained. This is not human legal review. Later amendments and commencement notifications have not been comprehensively checked.