This week in Indian law: Parliament passed the 106th Constitutional Amendment reserving one-third of seats for women in Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies. SEBI took enforcement action against insider trading violations. The Special Session of Parliament concluded on September 22. 6 significant legal developments this week across legislative policy, securities regulation, and constitutional rights.
Top story
106th Amendment: One-Third Women's Reservation in Legislatures
Category: legislative-policy | Date: 28 September 2023 (Presidential Assent) | Source: PRS India
Parliament passed the Constitution (One Hundred and Sixth Amendment) Act, 2023 — the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam — reserving one-third of seats in the Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies for women. The Bill received overwhelming bipartisan support in both Houses during the Special Session. However, the amendment's implementation is contingent upon the completion of a fresh census and a subsequent delimitation exercise, meaning actual reservation of seats may not take effect until after these processes are completed.
Why it matters: This is the most significant constitutional amendment for gender representation since the 73rd and 74th Amendments (1992) that reserved one-third of panchayat and municipality seats for women. However, the linkage to delimitation and census — neither of which has a fixed timeline — creates uncertainty about when the reservation will actually be implemented in practice. Constitutional law practitioners should note the unique conditional implementation mechanism.
Read more: Veritect analysis
Regulatory updates
SEBI Penalises Insider Trading Violations in Listed Company
Regulator: SEBI | Date: 22 September 2023 | Source: SEBI
SEBI took enforcement action against insider trading violations involving a listed entity, continuing its active posture against securities market misconduct. The action involved violations of the SEBI (Prohibition of Insider Trading) Regulations 2015 by connected persons who traded on the basis of unpublished price-sensitive information.
Key point: SEBI's consistent enforcement of insider trading regulations signals that market participants cannot expect leniency. Compliance officers of listed entities should ensure robust pre-clearance and trading window closure mechanisms are in place.
Legislative and policy developments
Special Session Concludes With Women's Reservation as Sole Output
Date: 22 September 2023
The five-day Special Session of Parliament (September 18-22) concluded with the Women's Reservation Bill as its sole substantive legislative output. The session also saw the formal renaming of the parliamentary proceedings venue from "Central Hall" to the new Parliament building. The limited legislative agenda — compared to the highly productive Monsoon Session — drew commentary about the necessity of convening a Special Session.
Key point: The Special Session demonstrated that Parliament can pass constitutional amendments with bipartisan consensus rapidly when political will exists, completing the Women's Reservation Bill from introduction to passage in just three days.
Also this week
- Article 370 verdict awaited — The legal community continued awaiting the Constitution Bench verdict on the Article 370 abrogation, with speculation about a potential delivery before CJI Chandrachud's retirement timeline.
- SC same-sex marriage hearing scheduled — The Constitution Bench hearing in Supriyo v. Union of India on the recognition of same-sex marriage was expected to conclude with a verdict in October.
- Sita Soren bribery immunity referral — The SC referred the question of legislators' bribery immunity under Article 105 to a seven-judge bench on September 29 (covered in the following week).
Looking ahead
- September 28: Women's Reservation Bill Presidential assent
- September 29: SC to refer legislators' bribery immunity to 7-judge bench (Sita Soren case)
- October 3: SC Pankaj Bansal PMLA judgment expected
- October 6: RBI MPC monetary policy decision
- October 17: SC same-sex marriage Constitution Bench verdict
This is the Veritect Weekly Legal Roundup for Week 38 of 2023. For daily updates, visit our legal news page. Subscribe to receive this roundup every Monday morning.
Veritect provides this content for informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice.