Modi meets Goldman Sachs leadership

• Women hold just 14 per cent of the 543 seats in the Lok Sabha; the bill proposes 850 seats, with 33 per cent reserved for women.
• Opposition parties support women's reservation in principle but say boundary changes would entrench BJP's dominance.
• The bill needs a two-thirds majority; if passed, new boundaries would take effect at the 2029 general election.

INDIA's government was seeking to expand the size of parliament by two-fifths to increase representation of women lawmakers, but opposition parties have cried foul, saying it would benefit the ruling party.

"We're set to take historic steps to empower women," prime minister Narendra Modi said, ahead of the special sitting of parliament on Thursday (16), to debate constitutional amendments to both expand seats for women and the overall size of parliament to over 800.