India is preparing a historic reform: 33% of the seats in Parliament are to be reserved for women.

The Indian Parliament began a special three-day session on Thursday to analyze a constitutional reform that proposes to double the number of seats in the Legislature, from 543 to 850, and reserve 33% of the seats for women.

This initiative, considered by the opposition as a maneuver to alter the balance of power, would make India the country with the largest elected house of representatives, surpassing the United Kingdom. The reform includes a redistribution of electoral constituencies, favoring northern states with larger populations at the expense of those in the south. The current distribution of seats dates back to 1973, and each member of parliament represents an average of over 2.5 million residents.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasized the importance of empowering women, while opposition leader Rahul Gandhi accused the government of using the reservation of seats for women as a pretext to consolidate power. Currently, women hold only 14% of the seats in the lower house of the Indian Parliament. The ruling BJP party has until April 18 to secure the necessary majority for the approval of the reform.