A panel of experts has suggested that political parties should reserve positions for women within their organisational structure and that the Election Commission should be given more authority to enforce internal democracy in parties. These recommendations were presented to the parliamentary committee examining the ‘One Nation, One Election’ bills. Former BJP MP Vinay Sahasrabuddhe, along with other eminent academics and policy experts, supported these proposals, calling them a vital step towards strengthening democratic reforms.
The experts urged political parties to implement women’s reservations within their organisations so that women can fully benefit from parliamentary and legislative quotas. They also stressed the need for male politicians to be more sensitive to gender justice issues and recommended that state governments ensure at least 30% reservation for women in all elected institutions, including cooperative societies, housing boards, and management councils.
The group also highlighted electoral campaign reforms, suggesting mandatory manifestos for all political parties and post-election action reports on their implementation. Candidates should similarly issue personal manifestos with follow-up reports. To reduce campaign costs, experts proposed that Doordarshan and private TV channels be required to air campaign speeches of all major party leaders in each state. Additionally, they recommended allocating public grounds for rallies via a lottery system to ensure fairness.
