MPs from the INDIA bloc are set to meet at 10 am on Friday in Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s chamber in Parliament to decide their floor strategy. The Lok Sabha will continue discussions and voting on the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026, which proposes 33 percent reservation for women in Parliament, state assemblies, and Union Territories. It is being considered along with the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, extending the provision to Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir, and the Delimitation Bill aimed at increasing and redrawing Lok Sabha constituencies to as many as 850 seats.

On Thursday, the Lok Sabha held a 12-hour-long session to debate amendments to the women’s reservation bill, including the removal of the condition linking its implementation to a census. In the final vote, 251 MPs supported the proposals while 185 opposed them, allowing all three Bills to be introduced. Leaders across parties participated in the debate, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, along with opposition figures such as Akhilesh Yadav, Asaduddin Owaisi, and K. C. Venugopal.

Opposition members expressed concerns about the proposed delimitation based on the 2011 census, arguing it could reduce the representation of southern states. Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra urged the government to implement women’s reservation based on the current 543 Lok Sabha seats, while Venugopal criticized the Bills as an attempt to undermine democracy.

In response, Amit Shah stated that southern states would not lose representation. He explained that while they currently hold about 23.76 percent of seats, their share would slightly increase to around 23.97 percent after the changes. He also cited examples showing that states like Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala would see an increase in the number of seats without any reduction in their overall share.

Disclaimer: This image is taken from ANI.