Women’s quota bill falls short amid Opposition pushback on delimitation

The women’s reservation amendment failed to pass in the Lok Sabha after falling short of the required two-thirds majority, with Opposition parties opposing the government’s move to link the quota to a future delimitation exercise.

The Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026, which aimed to reserve 33% seats for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, secured 298 votes in favour and 230 against, failing to meet the threshold needed for passage.

Following the bill’s defeat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticised Opposition parties, saying they had made a “mistake” and would have to “face consequences” for blocking the legislation. He argued that those opposing women’s reservation would be judged by women voters in the future.

The debate in Parliament extended late into the night, with the government strongly pitching the bill as a long-pending reform aimed at increasing women’s participation in decision-making.

However, Opposition parties maintained that while they supported women’s reservation in principle, they opposed linking it with delimitation and other structural changes.

The bill was introduced alongside proposals related to delimitation and expansion of parliamentary seats, which became a key point of contention. Critics argued that tying women’s reservation to a future delimitation exercise could delay its implementation and alter political representation across states.

After the bill failed, the government did not proceed with voting on the related delimitation and expansion proposals, stating that they were intrinsically linked to the women’s quota legislation.

The development marks a rare legislative setback for the ruling government and highlights deep divisions between the Centre and Opposition over the structure and timing of electoral reforms.

The women’s reservation proposal has been under discussion for decades, with successive governments attempting to bring it into effect. While there is broad political consensus on increasing women’s representation, disagreements over implementation mechanisms continue to stall progress.