After the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill 2026 failed to pass in the Lok Sabha, the ruling party and Opposition took swipes at each other.
While the BJP said “a dark chapter has been added to the history of India’s great democracy,” the Opposition framed the bill’s defeat as a successful defence against an “unconstitutional trick.”
Chief minister Yogi Adityanath termed the defeat of the Constitution Amendment Bill to implement reservation for women in legislatures by 2029 and increase the number of Lok Sabha seats a “betrayal of women’s power” in the nation.
“Today, a dark chapter has been added to the history of India’s great democracy. The Opposition’s obstruction of the passage of the Constitutional Amendment Bill, essential for the ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’, is a blow to the honour of ‘Bharat Mata’. It is a betrayal of all women in the nation and an infringement of their democratic rights,” Adityanath said in a post on X in Hindi late Friday night.
“The Congress-led INDIA bloc has revealed its anti-women mindset. The women’s power of the country is watching and understanding everything. She will remember this deception and injustice, and when the time comes, she will also give a befitting response,” he added.
Addressing a rally in West Bengal, Adityanath took potshots at the Opposition, including the Congress, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and others for not passing the Women’s Reservation Bill in Parliament on Friday.
Defence minister and Lucknow MP Rajnath Singh’s social media handle read, “During the special session of Parliament, the NDA government had introduced the 131st Constitution Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha to provide one-third reservation to women. The Congress-led INDIA alliance has exposed its anti-women character by voting against this bill in the Lok Sabha.”
“This was not just a bill, but an opportunity to empower Nari Shakti and give them due respect. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had appealed to all the parties to rise above partisan politics and heed the voice of their conscience, but the opposition sacrificed women’s empowerment and respect for women at the altar of their narrow political interests.”
Deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak wrote on X: “Today, in the Lok Sabha, the necessary Constitutional Amendment Bill for the “Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam” was not allowed to pass by Congress, TMC, DMK, and Samajwadi Party. The Opposition has betrayed half of the country’s population, nearly 70 crore women. Rejecting the bill to provide 33% reservation to women is highly condemnable. The Opposition will have to face the ‘wrath of women’ not only in the 2029 Lok Sabha elections but at every level, every election, and every place.”
Deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya wrote on X: “The Congress and the SP have clearly demonstrated that they do not want women’s reservation in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies. These parties are trapped in a patriarchal mindset and do not want equal participation of women in the welfare of the country.”
Minister for urban development and energy AK Sharma expressed deep regret over the situation that arose in Parliament. He stated that this day marked a significant opportunity for the dignity and empowerment of women, an opportunity that was squandered due to the Opposition.
Opposition reactions
Samajwadi Party national president Akhilesh Yadav termed the defeat of the bill as a defeat for the BJP.
“Every effort and every bill of the BJP is either to benefit a few people or a deceptive ploy to divide society. This time, the BJP wanted to dupe women by creating cracks in their unity through this bill, but the unity of the opposition has foiled the BJP’s designs. This is a victory for the awakened public consciousness of the country against the BJP,” Yadav wrote on X.
“Today, the unity of INDIA has proven that the BJP has lost the basis to remain in government in a ‘moral form’. A government that loses in Parliament must go out. This is the victory of the people, which is why an atmosphere of jubilation has been created across the country after years, because the people have come to believe that “the bad days are going away!”
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari said the Opposition has “saved democracy” through its stand. He said it is a successful defence against an “unconstitutional trick.”
