Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi has accused the government of violating the Constitution under the pretext of promoting women’s rights.
- Rahul Gandhi said the amendment bill has been defeated.
- He noted that the House currently does not have reserved seats for women.
- The vote saw 298 lawmakers in favour and 230 against the bill.
An Indian government bill to expand legislative assemblies—which included provisions to advance plans reserving one-third of seats for women—failed to secure enough votes in parliament on Friday, marking a rare setback for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Opposition parties said they supported quotas for women lawmakers but opposed linking the proposal to a large-scale redrawing of constituency boundaries, accusing the government of attempting to manipulate the electoral system for political advantage.
The government rejected the accusation and said it would continue pushing for women’s quotas. “The women of this country will not forgive you,” Interior Minister Amit Shah said in parliament before the vote.
The government argued that redrawing constituencies was necessary to reflect population changes since seats were last fixed after the 1971 census.
The bill would have expanded the lower house by around 55% to 850 lawmakers by the next general election in 2029, with a similar increase planned for regional assemblies.
In Friday’s vote in the lower house, 298 lawmakers supported the bill while 230 opposed it—short of the two-thirds majority required for a constitutional amendment.
A one-third reservation for women had already been approved in 2023 legislation, but was linked to the next census, which is still underway and would likely delay implementation beyond the 2029 election.
India’s parliament currently has no reserved seats for women, who make up about 14% of the lower house and 17% of the upper house. In state legislatures, women account for roughly 10% of lawmakers.
