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Parliament Defeats Modi Government’s Seat-Expansion Bill Tied to Women’s Quota

The outcome signals fears of a power shift from southern states due to population-based redrawing.

Overview

  • Parliament rejected the 131st Constitution Amendment that tied a 33% women's quota to expanding the Lok Sabha through delimitation, which redraws and reallocates seats based on population.
  • Southern chief ministers, including Tamil Nadu’s M.K. Stalin and Telangana’s Revanth Reddy, warned of mass protests if population-based redrawing cut their voice in Parliament.
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi apologized to women for the failure to pass the quota after his government could not secure support for the linked expansion plan.
  • Home Minister Amit Shah floated a uniform 50% seat increase across all states to avoid losses, but the late proposal failed to build consensus.
  • Opposition parties argued the quota can be enacted without adding MPs, a path that would avoid a fight over how many seats each state holds.