The Opposition has questioned the amendment proposed by the Centre in the Women Reservation Act 2023, linking it with the delimitation bill, saying that the intention of the government is not to empower women through these laws but to win elections. Participating in the debate after the Centre tabled three bills in the Lok Sabha, namely – the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-First Amendment) Bill, 2026; the Delimitation Bill, 2026; and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, during the special extention of the Parliament’s budget session, the opposition expressed its concern saying that the delimitation exercise, once completed, would reduce the representation of the southern states in the Lower House. According to the proposed delimitation bill, the strength of the Lok Sabha would increase to a maximum of 850. The Opposition said that though they support women reservation but that should be implemented as per the current strength of the House, which is 543. It’s against the constitutional amendment to increase the strength to 850 in order to operationalise the 33 per cent reservation.
‘Democracy Will Cease To Exist If…’: Priyanka Gandhi
Congress MP from Wayanad, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, hit out at the Centre, saying that if the constitutional amendment bill tabled by the government is passed, the democracy will cease to exist. She accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of using the women’s reservation to hang on to power, saying, “Any woman will tell you that women can instantly identify men who repeatedly try to mislead them.”
The Congress MP also questioned the government as to why it was not doing a caste census, saying it is important as women from the Other Backward Classes (OBC) also need to be given their due. She asked, “Is the prime minister afraid of a caste census, fearing that once the actual data emerges, it will reveal just how large and powerful the OBC community truly is?”
Questioning the linking of women’s quota with the delimitation, Priyanka Gandhi said the prime minister should implement women’s reservation based on the current strength of the Lok Sabha.
While she continued to take on the Centre over the proposed constitutional amendment, the Congress MP in a friendly banter told Home Minister Amit Shah that had Chanakya been alive today, he would have been startled by the BJP leader’s “political shrewdness”. She accused the government of once again wanting to “dupe” people and launching a “big attack on the country’s integrity”.
‘Don’t Bulldoze Delimitation in Name of Women,’ Says Gaurav Gogoi
Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi also echoed what Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said that the government wanted to ‘bulldoze’ delimitation in the name of women’s reservation. He added that if the Centre is really committed to implementing it, then it should do so on the basis of the current strength of the Lower House.
Include OBC, Muslim Women, Demands Akhilesh Yadav
Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav hit out at the Centre, saying that the government is turning ‘nari’ (women) into a ‘nara’ (slogan) for political gain. The former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh demanded inclusion of OBC and Muslim women in the Women Reservation Bill.
Akhilesh Yadav further questioned the government, saying that by pushing for an early delimitation in the name of women’s reservation, the government wanted to delay the population and caste census.
‘No PM Trampled States Like Narendra Modi’: MK Stalin
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin opposed the Centre’s move to link women’s reservation and delimitation, saying it’s mere a “jugglery”, and its objective is to fulfill RSS’s wish of “one country, one government.” That is the reason why the Constitution is being trampled, and how will Tamil Nadu accept it, he questioned.
Stalin also referred to the hoisting of black flags across the state in order to mark their protest against the government’s move.
Women’s Quota-Delimitation A Conspiracy, Alleges Mamata
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also hit out at the Centre, saying that linking women’s reservation with delimitation was a conspiracy to delete voters’ names from the electoral roll and implement the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
Mamata said that attempts are being made to divide India by linking women’s reservation and delimitation bills. “Connecting these two bills is a conspiracy to delete voters’ names and implement NRC,” she said.
In another statement, Bengal Chief Minister highlighted that the Women Reservation Bill was passed long ago in 2023, so why is there a delay in its implementation?
‘No Politics in Delimitation For One Party’s Benefit,’ Says Punjab CM
Sharing similar views as expressed by other opposition parties, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said that the government should implement the women’s reservation as per the current strength of the Lok Sabha or they should ensure that all states’ share in the seats after the delimitation would increase in the same proportion.
PM Modi Assures Oppn on Women Quota And Delimitation
Assuring the opposition after several parties raised concerns whether delimitation would reduce southern states’ representation in the Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “Whether it is the South, the North, the East, the West, small states or large states, the decision-making process will not do injustice to anyone and there will be no change in proportion in the proposed increase in seats in the lower House of Parliament.”
“I want to say from this House today with a great sense of responsibility that whether it is the South, the North, the East, the West, small states or large states… this decision-making process will not discriminate against or do injustice to anyone. In the past government that was in power, in whose time the delimitation took place, there will be no change in that proportion either, and the increase will also be in the same proportion,” PM Modi said.
“If you need a guarantee, I give you a guarantee, if you need a promise, I make a promise… because if the intention is clear, there is no need to play games with words,” he added.
Amit Shah: Will Make Oppn Understand Delimitation Like A ‘KG’ Student
Union Home Minister Amit Shah while addressing the concerns raised by the opposition said that he will make the opposition understand the delimitation like a ‘KG’ kid and mentioned that the seats in three states namely Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh will increase.
Taking a dig at opposition leaders who alleged that the government is keen on implementing the women’s reservation Act on the basis of the 2011 census as it does not want to hold a caste census, Amit Shah said, “Misinformation is being spread” and that the government has already taken a decision to hold a caste census.
“The government has decided to do a caste census. Misinformation is being spread that there is no mention of caste. Census happens in two phases. First, all the houses are counted, and then the people living inside them. Now there has been no caste system for buildings. When there will be one, then we will count that too,” the Home Minister said.
Amit Shah also spoke on concerns about the Southern states losing their influence as a result of the increase in seats in the Lok Sabha to implement the Women’s Reservation Act and said while there will be about a 50 per cent increase in their seats, the relative proportion in total seats will also move up.
Earlier on Thursday, the government tabled three bills including the Constitution (131 Amendment) Bill, 2026, the Delimitation Bill, 2026, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 in the Lok Sabha after the Opposition pressed for a division against the move to introduce three Bills, instead of a voice vote. As per the final division, there were a total of 251 AYES and 185 NOES out of the total 333 votes.
These Bills were introduced in the three-day special extension of the Budget Session on April 16,17,18 to pass the amendment to the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam. The government seeks opposition support for passing the amendment bill to implement the women’s reservation bill from the 2029 Lok Sabha polls on the basis of the 2011 census.
The Lok Sabha will resume the debate on Friday, April 17, on the three bills before putting them to vote for passage in the House.
