New Delhi, April 16 -- Opposition parties mounted a coordinated attack in the Lok Sabha on Thursday during a heated debate on the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, with several leaders questioning both the timing of the legislation and its link to the proposed delimitation exercise. While reiterating support for women's reservation, they accused the Centre of attempting to redraw the electoral map under its cover.
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra emerged as one of the most forceful voices in the debate, directly countering Prime Minister Narendra Modi's claims on women's empowerment. She argued that the Bill "has nothing to do with women" and instead raises deeper concerns about representation and fairness. Taking aim at the government's narrative, she said the Prime Minister's speech projected the BJP as the sole champion of women's reservation while "claiming he did not want credit".
Drawing on history, Vadra referred to the 1928 Motilal Nehru report, which had already articulated equal rights for women, to challenge the claim that the idea had been delayed for decades. She stressed that the Congress had supported the 2023 women's reservation law in line with its ideology. In a sharp remark, she said, "Baar baar behkaane wale purushon ko mahilaayein jhat se pehchan leti hain," asserting that women can see through repeated attempts to mislead them.
Backing her stance, Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi, who opened the Opposition's arguments, termed the legislation a "backdoor Bill for delimitation," alleging that the government had merely placed a women's reservation label on a broader political exercise. K C Venugopal echoed this, saying the Opposition was ready to support immediate implementation under the existing strength of Parliament and accusing the government of delaying the process. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav also joined the attack, accusing the BJP of "trying to make naari into a nara." He demanded that OBC and Muslim women be included in the reservation framework and alleged that the government was avoiding a caste census to deny rightful representation. "We are for women's reservation, but we are against the BJP's trickery," he said, warning that delimitation could alter the country's electoral balance.
From the Trinamool Congress, Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar called the Bill a "disguised" attempt to push delimitation and questioned why it was introduced during ongoing Assembly elections. She argued that if the government was serious, it should have brought the proposal earlier and pushed for 50 per cent reservation for women, noting her party already fields a higher proportion of women candidates.
Other Opposition leaders raised procedural and constitutional concerns. Congress MP Manish Tewari pointed out that delimitation has historically followed a Census, questioning the use of outdated data and the removal of safeguards. Shashi Tharoor said the party had "no problem" with immediate implementation of women's reservation but opposed linking it to delimitation without wider consultation, especially given concerns from southern states.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Arvind Sawant questioned why the 2023 law had not yet been implemented, while AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi strongly opposed the Bill, calling it a violation of federalism. He warned that lifting the delimitation freeze would disproportionately empower more populous regions while reducing the voice of others, particularly in the South.
CPI(M) MP John Brittas cautioned that a sharp rise in the number of seats after delimitation could make legislatures unwieldy and affect governance, raising concerns about efficiency and balance.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.