Women's Reservation Bill unlikely in the Budget session

This has become clear as the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Law and Justice, to which the bill was sent for scrutiny, has not yet been reconstituted.

The bill will have to be referred to the new committee for scrutiny and it could take a week to constitute the panel.

Though the previous committee headed by senior Congress Member of Parliament E M Sudarshana Natchiappan has done most of the groundwork, the new committee may like to scrutinise the bill once again, leading to some delay, Parliament sources said.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had only on Monday held consultations with the top brass of Congress including party chief Sonia Gandhi on evolving a consensus on the bill.

The long pending controversial bill is on "top" of government agenda to be made into "reality", Law Minister Veerappa Moily said soon after the issue figured in the President's address to the joint sitting of Parliament.

In her address to both the Houses of Parliament, the President had mentioned bringing a legislation to reserve 33 per cent of seats for women in Parliament and the state assemblies.

The bill has remained stalled due to resistance from some parties which are opposed to it in its present form and want quota within quota.

The controversial bill drew criticism from the Janata Dal-United, the Samajwadi Party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal and some independent members.

JD-U member Sharad Yadav went to the extent of saying that he would consume poison in the Lok Sabha if the legislation was passed.

However, he tried to do a U-turn on the issue later, saying that he had not made such a remark.

Samajwadi Party said though it was not opposed to reservation of seats in Parliament for women, it was against the present format of the bill.

There was talk of dilution of the bill especially its provision for 33 per cent reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies, but major parties Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress have ruled out dilution in this regard.

The parties opposing the bill say the measure was intended to keep women of Other Backward Castes communities outside legislatures.

RJD leader Lalu Prasad said it was aimed at finishing regional parties that have grown after Mandalisation of politics.