One Hundred and Fourth Amendment of the Constitution of India

The One Hundred and Fourth Amendment of the Constitution of India, officially known as the Constitution (One Hundred and Fourth Amendment) Act, 2019, extends the deadline for the cessation for the reservation of seats for members from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies by a period of 10 years.

The Constitution (One Hundred and Fourth Amendment) Act, 2019
Parliament of India
Citation104th Amendment Act of the Indian Constitution
Territorial extentIndia
Enacted byLok Sabha
Passed10 December 2019
Enacted byRajya Sabha
Passed12 December 2019
Assented to21 January 2020
Commenced25 January 2020
Legislative history
Bill introduced in the Lok SabhaThe Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Sixth Amendment) Bill, 2019
Bill citationBill No. 371 of 2019
Bill published on4 December 2019
Introduced byRavi Shankar Prasad
Status: In force

The reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes was set to expire on the 26th of January, 2020 as mandated by the Ninety Fifth Amendment[1] but was extended for another 10 years with the given reason -

Although the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes have made considerable progress in the last 70 years, the reasons which weighed with the Constituent Assembly in making provisions with regard to the aforesaid reservation of seats have not yet ceased to exist. Therefore, with a view to retaining the inclusive character as envisioned by the founding fathers of the Constitution, it is proposed to continue the reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes for another ten years i.e. up to 25th January, 2030 -Ravi Shankar Prasad, Minister of Law and Justice[2]

The amendment does not, however, extend the period of reservation of the 2 Lok Sabha seats reserved for members of the Anglo-Indian Community and thus the practice of nominating two members of the Anglo-Indian community by the President of India under the recommendation of the Prime Minister of India was effectively abolished.

Text

BE it enacted by Parliament in the Seventieth Year of the Republic of India as follows:—

1. (1) This Act may be called the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-sixth Amendment) Act, 2019.

(2) It shall come into force on the 25th day of January, 2020.

2. In article 334 of the Constitution,—

(a) for the marginal heading, the following marginal heading shall be substituted, namely:—

“Reservation of seats and special representation to cease after certain period”;

(b) in the long line, after clauses (a) and (b), for the words "seventy years", the words "eighty years in respect of clause (a) and seventy years in respect of clause (b)" shall be substituted.

Legislative history

The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Sixth Amendment) Bill, 2019 was introduced in the Lok Sabha on the 9th of December 2019 by Ravi Shankar Prasad, Minister of Law and Justice. The bill sought to amend Article 334 of the constitution.

The bill was unanimously passed by the Lok Sabha on the 10th of December 2019 with 355 votes in favour and 0 votes against.[3] The bill was then tabled in the Rajya Sabha and was also passed unanimously on the 12th of December 2019 with 163 votes in favour and 0 votes against.[4] The bill received assent from President Ram Nath Kovind on the 21st of January 2020 and was notified in The Gazette of India on the next day. The amendment came into effect on the 25th of January 2020.

See also

References
  1. The Constitution (Ninety-Fifth Amendment) Act, 2009
  2. PRS India - THE CONSTITUTION (ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SIXTH AMENDMENT) BILL, 2019
  3. Lok Sabha passes 126th Constitution Amendment Bill, retrieved 22 March 2020
  4. Voting & Passing of The Constitution (126th Amendment) Bill, 2019, retrieved 22 March 2020
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