Union Law Minister Arjun Meghwal introduced the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-First Amendment) Bill, 2026, and the Delimitation Bill, 2026, in Lok Sabha today. Home Minister Amit Shah introduced the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, in the House.
Introducing the Bills, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal termed the day as historic, saying the government is working to give political justice to women. He said the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-First Amendment) Bill, 2026, will ensure equality for women. Quoting Dr BR Ambedkar, Mr Meghwal stressed that the progress of a community is measured by the degree of progress which women have achieved. He said the time for the reservation of 33 percent seats is here now.
The Law Minister said that to implement a uniform and legally consistent distribution of reserved seats for women across the country, it would be necessary to increase the total number of seats in the Lok Sabha by 50 percent over the current strength. He added that with such an increase, the new strength of the Lok Sabha would be 815 members. He said that out of these, 272 seats would be reserved for women, which comes in addition to the existing allocation. Mr Meghwal said that this formula ensures that no group suffers any loss, and the relative strength of each state will remain unchanged in the future.
The Law Minister said that the results of Census 2027 are not expected to be available before the end of 2027 or the beginning of 2028. He informed that, therefore, the 2011 Census will be used for the readjustment or division of territorial constituencies and for the allocation of seats for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. He said this has also been clearly stated in the objectives of the Bill. Mr Meghwal said the Narendra Modi government has brought a number of schemes for the economic and social upliftment of women. He cited MUDRA Yojana, Lakhpati Didis and Sukanya Samridhhi Yojana as among the schemes brought by the government.
Opening the discussion on the Bills for the Opposition, Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi said his party is in favour of women’s reservation, but it should be simplified and not linked with delimitation. He said the reservation should be based on the existing 543 seats in the Lok Sabha. He alleged that the government is creating unnecessary delays in implementing the women’s reservation and urged the government to bring it into force immediately.
Mr Gogoi reiterated that Congress has consistently supported women’s reservation. He highlighted that senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi had earlier made a similar demand in Parliament, emphasising reservation for women.
Tejasvi Surya of BJP said that today is a historic day as the women of the country, who have been waiting for nearly four decades, are now set to receive their due share. He said, by introducing three new bills, the Narendra Modi government is fast-tracking the Women’s Reservation bills.
Mr Surya said, the move is being seen as a significant step towards opening a new chapter in India’s development journey. He emphasised that, for the first time, the Nari Shakti of the country will receive vocal, visible, credible, and tangible representation in the nation-building process.
The discussion is underway.
Earlier, the Opposition members in the Lok Sabha had pressed for a division against the move to introduce the bills. After use of vote slips, Speaker Om Birla announced that there were 251 AYEs and 185 NOEs.
Congress MP KC Venugopal had opposed the introduction of the Bills, alleging that these will undermine the federal structure of the country. Home Minister Amit Shah strongly rebutted that Mr Venugopal can raise only technical objections to the introduction of the Bill but cannot speak on the merits of bills. Samajwadi Party MP Akhilesh Yadav questioned the necessity to bring the Bills in such a hurried manner, saying that Census should be done first.
Home Minister Amit Shah replied that the process of Census has begun and the government has already taken the decision to conduct the caste census. TMC’s Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar opposed the introduction of the Bills saying women’s reservation is being made dependent on future delimitation exercise.
When the House assembled, Lok Sabha paid tribute to legendary playback singer Asha Bhosle, who passed away in Mumbai, at the age of 92. Paying tributes, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said that the remarkable career spanning more than seven decades, she made an invaluable contribution to Indian cinema and music.
Mr Birla said, Asha Bhosle lent her voice to songs in numerous Indian and foreign languages, earning immense popularity and admiration. He said, in recognition of her outstanding contributions, she was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2000 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2008.
The House also paid Obituary references to the passing away of its Abu Hasem Khan Choudhury, Mohsina Kidwai and Hari Narayan Rajbhar. Members of the House also observed silence as a mark of respect to the memory of the departed.
