CURRENT AFFAIRS | 20 APRIL 2026
CLAT GK + CONSTITUTIONAL LAW & RELEVANT AREA
PLFS 2024-25: female Labour Force Participation Rate rose from 33.9% (2022) to roughly 40% in 2025 — but global peers run 49% (Brazil 53%, Vietnam 69%). Elite institutions stall: IIM-A female faculty at 20%, IIT-B 16%, IIT-Jodhpur (highest) at 22%. Only 13.1% of supervisor/manager roles are women. NSE 200 boards: just 7% women chairs; NSE 500: only around 5%. Research shows women in constituencies with women lawmakers see 1.8 percentage points higher growth.
Why it matters for CLAT: Art 15(3) enabling special provisions for women + Art 39(a), (d) (equal pay + livelihood) + Art 42 (humane work conditions). Companies Act 2013 Sec 149(1) mandated one woman director on boards — partial success. SEBI LODR Reg 17(1)(a) added independent woman director for top 500 companies. The statutory architecture exists; execution lags.
Constitutional Framework
- Art 15(3) — special provisions for women and children
- Art 39(a), (d) — adequate means of livelihood + equal pay for equal work
- Art 42 — maternity relief + humane conditions of work
- Art 46 — promotion of educational and economic interests of weaker sections
- Companies Act 2013 Sec 149(1) — at least one woman director mandatory
- SEBI LODR Reg 17(1)(a) — independent woman director for top 500 companies
- Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act 2017 — 26-week paid maternity leave
- POSH Act 2013 — prevention of sexual harassment at workplace
- Vishaka v State of Rajasthan (1997) — guidelines that became the POSH Act
CLAT Angle — How This Gets Tested
- Data-trap question: ‘Woman director’ compliance (process) vs ‘woman CEO/Chair’ (substance). Only 7% of NSE 200 board chairs are women — tokenism critique is Art 14 + Art 15(3) territory.
- Remember Sec 149(1) Companies Act 2013 is not gender-specific beyond ‘one’; SEBI LODR added the independent woman director requirement for listed top-500s.
- Vishaka → POSH Act trajectory: SC guidelines (1997) later codified into statute (2013) — classic CLAT example of judicial legislation being absorbed by Parliament.
- Equal Remuneration Act 1976 is now subsumed in the Code on Wages 2019 — gender-based wage discrimination continues to be barred statutorily.
Key Facts
| Female LFPR (2025, PLFS) | ~40% (up from 33.9% in 2022) |
| Global Peer Average | 49% (Brazil 53%, Vietnam 69%) |
| IIM-A Female Faculty | 20% |
| IIT-B Female Faculty | 16% |
| Women Supervisor/Manager Roles | 13.1% |
| NSE 200 — Women Board Chairs | 7% |
| NSE 500 — Women Board Chairs | ~5% |
| Key Statutes | Companies Act 2013 Sec 149(1); SEBI LODR Reg 17(1)(a); POSH Act 2013; Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act 2017 |
Mnemonic
LADDER — LFPR 40% rising, A-class faculty stuck, Dismal 7% board chairs, Disparity 1.8pp growth gap, Executive ceiling intact, Reg 17(1)(a) insufficient
Test Yourself — 10 MCQ Quiz
Practice Quiz — 10 CLAT-Style Questions
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