Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday said India Alliance MPs are opposing the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill and the Delimitation Bill in the Lok Sabha and will “defeat” the proposed laws.
Mallikarjun Kharge said, “Our people are fighting and will defeat it in the Lok Sabha.”
The Lok Sabha is continuing discussions on the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-First Amendment) Bill, 2026, the Union Territory Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 (which has been extended to Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir) and the Delimitation Bill, which aims to increase and redefine the number of Lok Sabha constituencies to 850 seats.
Opposition parties have alleged that if the delimitation process is based on the 2011 census, it will reduce the representation of the southern states in the Lok Sabha.
Congress MP K. Suresh described the delimitation bill as “dangerous”, alleging that it would “destroy” the opposition parties.
He said, “We are not opposing the Women’s Reservation Bill. We are opposing the Delimitation Bill. This will be a dangerous bill and will completely devastate the opposition parties in the country.”
CPI MP P. Sandosh sought answers from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, raising questions on the need to link delimitation, census and reservation for women MLAs together.
P. Sandosh told ANI, “The Women’s Reservation Bill is an Act passed unanimously by the Parliament of India, we all cooperated with the government. Unfortunately, the government is trying to weaken the federal structure of the country by misusing the Women’s Reservation Bill. Why were delimitation, census and all these things linked together? That is the question. And the Prime Minister should answer this.”
Meanwhile, JDU MP Sanjay Kumar Jha questioned the India Bloc over its opposition to the bills, saying that all parties had unanimously passed the Nari Shakti Vandan Act in 2023.
The JDU MP said, “PM Modi has clearly said in his speech that no change has been made in the delimitations. You had passed it in 2023, so what is the point of protesting? How is this a threat to democracy? He does not trust the women of this country.”
The Congress had also issued a three-line whip to its MPs in the Lok Sabha asking them to remain present in the House during the special session running from April 16 to 18 and support the party’s stand.
To pass the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, the Center will need a two-thirds majority of 362 seats in the Lok Sabha.