Lok Sabha fails to pass women's reservation bill with 2/3 majority; 298 votes in favour, 230 against

IN a major setback to the government, the Lok Sabha failed to pass the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-First Amendment) Bill, 2026, that sought to increase the total number of Lok Sabha seats and tweak the women's reservation law passed in 2023.

The bill needed a two-thirds majority of the Lok Sabha, which is approximately 360 votes, to get passed in the lower house of Parliament. However, only 298 MPs voted in favour of the bill, and 230 MPs voted against it.

“Not passed by a majority of the total membership of the House and by a majority of at least two-thirds of the members present and voting, as per the provisions of Article 368 of the Constitution,” Sansad TV posted on X.

Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had appealed to the Opposition leaders to “take a sensitive decision by voting in favour of women’s reservation.”

The voting on the Constitution Amendment Bill did not take place by voice vote but through a division of votes, “meaning it is necessary to clearly indicate how many votes were cast in support or opposition.”

The government had introduced three bills in the Lok Sabha on Thursday. They were the controversial Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-First Amendment) Bill, 2026; the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026; and the Delimitation Bill.

While the voting in the Lok Sabha took place on the Constitution Amendment Bill on Friday, Union minister Kiren Rijiju said the government won't proceed with the other two bills.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla announced, “The [Constitution 131st Amendment] bill did not pass due to the failure to secure a two-thirds majority during the voting in the House.”

“Therefore, no further action will now be taken on the Union Territory Legislative Amendment Bill 2026 and the Delimitation Bill 2026, which were linked to the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill 2026,” he said.

The debate on the three began on Thursday and continued on Friday. Opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav, strongly opposed the bill, saying that the debate is not about women's reservation but linking it with the delimitation on the basis of the Census 2011.

Debate in Lok Sabha today: Rahul Gandhi vs Amit Shah

Earlier in the day, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi slammed the government over the Delimitation Bill, which is among the legislations to implement women's reservation from the 2029 Lok Sabha polls, and said it has "nothing to do with the empowerment of women" and is an "attempt to change the electoral map of India."

"The first truth is that this is not a women's bill. This has nothing to do with the empowerment of women. This is an attempt to change the electoral map of India. Actually, it is a shameful act," he said.

"What is being attempted here is a bypass of the caste census. What they are trying to do is they are trying to avoid giving power, giving representation to my OBC brothers and sisters, and take away from them...the point is not that, but the point is that whether the caste census is going to be used for representation in Parliament, Vidhan Sabha. What you are trying to do is to make sure that the caste census has nothing to do with representation. So that you can kick the ball down by 10 years," Rahul Gandhi added.

Rahul Gandhi, who is the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, said the opposition will not allow the three bills to be passed and said the government should implement the Nari Shakti Act without delay.

"Giving the women's reservation, which is easy to do, and every Opposition member will pass it...bring that old bill back right now, we will help you pass it with implementation this second. That is the women's bill, this is something else. The truth needs to be told about what this is," he said.

In his reply, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday targeted the opposition parties over their stance on the bills to implement women's reservation from the 2029 general elections and said that when they fight the next elections, they will face the wrath of women.

Amit Shah alleged that "all members of INDI Alliance had, using if, but, ...opposed the bill" brought by the government to implement women's reservation from 2029 general elections.

Replying to the marathon debate in Lok Sabha on the three bills, Amit Shah accused the opposition parties of trying to create a south versus north narrative over delimitation and the proposed an increase in seats and said the southern states have as much right over this house as the northern states do.

"Mahilian dekh rahin hain, raste ka roda kaun hai (women are seeing who is the obstacle in their path). When they [opposition members] fight the polls, they will face the wrath of women," he said.

"No one has objected to the women's reservation. But, if we see closely, all members of the INDI alliance have opposed it by using 'ifs and but'," he said.

Referring to the strong reservations of opposition parties on the Delimitation Bill, Amit Shah said that the Constitution provides for periodic delimitation.

"Delimitation also includes provisions for increasing the seats for SC and ST in proportion to their growing population. In a way, those opposing delimitation are also opposing the increase in SC and ST seats," he said.

He also contended, "I make it clear that the southern states have as much right over this house as the northern states do. This country should not be divided by the north-south narrative".