Central government Sunday reiterated that no changes were proposed to the Delimitation Commission Act in the Bills, introduced by it in the Lok Sabha on April 16, 2026 to ensure 33 percent women reservation in 2029.

Responding to frequently asked queries about three bills to allay all apprehensions in the minds of public, it stated, “On April 16, 2026, the central government introduced three key bills in the Lok Sabha i.e., “The Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-First Amendment) Bill, 2026”; “The Delimitation Bill, 2026” and “The Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026.”

To explain the rationale why those three Bills were brought at this point in time, it, while referring to (Women Reservation Act 2023), stated, “The “Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam” provides that reservation for women will be implemented based on delimitation after the Census conducted post-2026. If the government had waited for the Census and subsequent delimitation, women would not have been able to benefit from 33 percent reservation even in the 2029 general elections as the census and subsequent delimitation period take time. Therefore, to ensure timely benefits to half the population, it was considered necessary to delink implementation of the Act from this condition.”

Spelling out the benefits if these Bills had been passed, it asserted that if passed and approved, these Bills would have enabled women to receive 33 percent reservation in the Lok Sabha as early as the 2029 general elections.

Clarifying why the delimitation was linked with the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam and why there was a proposal to increase seats, the central government delineated that it was imperative to provide reservation. “Delimitation means finalising the boundary of a constituency. It is essential for implementing women’s reservation. The limit on seats in Lok Sabha was set at 550 in 1976. In 1971, the population of India was 54 Cr. Today it is 140 Cr. Therefore, it is important to increase seats to 850 in Lok Sabha. This would enable fair representation of people in the Parliament.”

It rejected the contentions (forwarded by the opposition) that there was any attempt to modify the Delimitation Commission Act for political advantage or it would have affected ongoing state elections.

“No changes were proposed to the Delimitation Commission Act. The existing legal framework remains intact and any recommendations of the Commission would require parliamentary approval and Presidential assent. Ongoing elections, including those in states like Tamil Nadu or West Bengal, would not be affected, as elections up to 2029 will be conducted under the current system,” the Centre has reiterated.

Elucidating the rationale behind increasing Lok Sabha seats to 850, it pointed out that the proposal was based on a proportional expansion approach. “A uniform 50 percent increase in seats would maintain the proportion for all states and UTs. Applying this principle to the current 543 seats would lead to approximately 815 seats. Therefore, the upper limit on seats was increased from the current cap of 550 seats in Lok Sabha to 850 seats,” it said.

The government also rejected the apprehensions that the new delimitation proposal would have adversely affected southern or smaller states. “All states would see a uniform 50 percent increase in seats. Southern states would not face any reduction in representation; rather, their overall share would remain stable. For example, Tamil Nadu’s seats would increase proportionally, ensuring no disadvantage. As the table below shows, the southern states currently have 23.76 percent seats in Lok Sabha. This would have become 23.87 percent after passage of the Bills,” it clarified.

It asserted that in case of 50 percent increase model, the revised status (in percentage) of Karnataka would have been 5.14 percent against existing 5.15 percent; in Andhra Pradesh, it would have been 4.65 percent instead of existing 4.60 percent; in Telangana, it would have been 3.18 percent against present status of 3.13 percent; in Tamil Nadu, it would have been 7.23 percent against current status of 7.18 percent and in case of Keralam, it would have been 3.67 percent against existing status of 3.68 percent.

It also stated that contrary to the propaganda, the states that controlled population growth would not face any disadvantage. “As the increase in seats was proposed uniformly across states, their proportional representation would remain unchanged or slightly improve,” it was stated. With regard to questions about the Bills affecting the representation of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, the central government clarified, “The process of delimitation ensures proportional reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. With an expanded House, the number of reserved seats would increase significantly, thereby strengthening their representation.”

It also rejected the contention that the Constitutional Amendment Bill introduced was aimed at delaying caste census.

“The Government has already started a time-bound programme for caste census. The process includes detailed enumeration, and caste-related data will be recorded during the population count phase,” it clarified. Regarding questions why there was no separate quota for Muslim women within the reservation framework, it reiterated, “The Constitution of India does not provide for reservation based on religion. Reservation policies are based on social and economic backwardness, as laid out in the Constitution.” The central government pointed out that the women’s reservation was not implemented in the 2024 general elections itself as implementing reservation required delimitation of seats. “Delimitation is an extensive consultative process. It takes about two years to complete delimitation. Therefore, these Bills (including Delimitation Bill) were brought in the Parliament for implementing women’s reservation. However, the Women’s Reservation Bill was introduced and passed in 2023 to establish the legal and constitutional framework for women’s reservation. Its unanimous passage reflected broad political support at the time, enabling the enactment of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam,” it stated.

With regard to the requirement of separate Union Territories Bill, it was pointed out that the Legislative Assemblies in Union Territories such as Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi and Puducherry are governed by separate legal provisions. “Therefore, specific amendments were required to implement women’s reservation in these regions, necessitating a separate Bill,” it was stated.

Bankura (WB), Apr 19: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday accused the Trinamool Congress of “betraying” women by preventing the passage of the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026 in Parliament, and asserted that the women would punish the ruling party in West Bengal in the upcoming assembly polls.

Addressing an election rally in Bankura district, Modi attacked the Mamata Banerjee-led party over its opposition to the bill, which sought to provide 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament and state assemblies before 2029.

He attempted to flip what was widely seen as a setback for the BJP into an emotive campaign issue in West Bengal, where women voters and beneficiaries of welfare schemes have emerged as the single most decisive electoral constituency.

“We want the role of our daughters to be expanded in building a developed India, with more and more daughters entering politics as well. But you must have seen what happened in Parliament. TMC has once again betrayed the sisters of West Bengal.

“The sisters of West Bengal wanted 33 per cent reservation for them, and Modi ensured it. They wanted it to be implemented from 2029 itself, but TMC did not want it,” he said.

Seeking to place the TMC on the defensive, Modi alleged that the ruling party betrayed the women because they are challenging TMC’s ‘mahajungleraj’ (lawlessness) in West Bengal.

“The TMC does not want women empowerment and reservation. It does not want women from West Bengal to become MPs and MLAs in large numbers because women of the state are challenging its ‘mahajungleraj’. That is why they conspired with Congress and opposed the bill. The women of West Bengal will punish TMC in this election,” he said.

The bill failed to clear the Lok Sabha on Friday after falling short of the required two-thirds majority. Although 298 MPs voted in favour and 230 against it, the legislation required 352 votes for passage.

Modi sought to draw a sharp contrast between what he called the BJP’s politics of women’s empowerment and the TMC’s “betrayal” of West Bengal’s women.

“The BJP’s identity is tied to women’s empowerment and their safety. We want the role of daughters to expand in building a developed India and more and more daughters to enter politics. But you saw what happened in Parliament. The TMC has betrayed the sisters of West Bengal once again,” he said.

In West Bengal’s increasingly polarised campaign, where the BJP is attempting to prise away a section of the TMC’s formidable women vote, the failed bill has suddenly given the saffron party a new line of attack.

Using the issue to widen his attack, Modi accused the TMC of appeasing infiltrators while denying women their due.

“This is the same TMC which breaks every law and every rule to benefit infiltrators, but opposes women’s empowerment. It is also the same party that is actively promoting religion-based reservations. In doing so, it is undermining the spirit of the Constitution,” he said.

Modi also sought to pitch the BJP as the party that seeks tribal empowerment in the Junglemahal region, while accusing the TMC and the Congress of insulting President Droupadi Murmu.

“The anti-tribal TMC insulted President Droupadi Murmu. Both the TMC and the Congress are anti-tribal. That is why they fielded a candidate against her in the presidential election, just as Nehruji had fielded a candidate against Babasaheb Ambedkar. They did not want a tribal person to become President. But today, the whole world respects her,” he said.

“The TMC hates tribal daughters and sisters. The BJP gave the country its first tribal President because we are committed to empowering tribal communities,” he added.

Modi alleged that the TMC ignored the Kurmi community’s grievances while selectively offering benefits to its “vote bank”. “The TMC does not listen to the grievances of the Kurmi community, but wants to give reservation to its vote bank,” he said.

“Baluchari sarees are also an identity of Bankura. If the BJP comes to power, the district will benefit from the ‘One District, One Product’ scheme. The TMC has done nothing for the tribals. The TMC’s syndicate does not allow it. In Odisha, 30,000 houses have been built for tribals. That has not happened in West Bengal because there is a ruthless, anti-tribal government here,” he said.

In an attempt to counter the TMC’s welfare pitch, Modi announced a series of promises for women if the BJP came to power in the state. “When the BJP government is formed in West Bengal, the poor will receive free ration. No one will be able to snatch your ration,” he said.

He said women would receive assistance of up to Rs 1.5 lakh under the PM Awas Yojana to build permanent houses, and accused the state government of depriving them of the benefits of central schemes.

“Due to the corruption of the TMC government, women of West Bengal do not get the benefits that women get in BJP-ruled states. The cruel government has stopped the Ayushman Bharat scheme here. As soon as the BJP government is formed in West Bengal, women will get free treatment up to Rs 5 lakh,” he said.