Congress urges PM Modi to convene all party meeting on women's quota issue

New Delhi: With the election campaign for the Assembly elections over, Congress on Tuesday renewed its demand for an all-party meeting to discuss the early implementation of 33 per cent women's quota within the existing 543 Lok Sabha seats from 2029 elections, saying it is now time for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to make amends for his "sins of using India's women" to drive through his "personal political agenda".

Congress General Secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh said now that the election campaign is over and Modi’s “mischievous move to ram through a diabolical delimitation” of the Lok Sabha has “failed miserably” because of Opposition unity and solidarity, it is time for him to do what the Opposition has been unitedly and consistently demanding since mid-March 2026.

“An all-party meeting should be convened to discuss how the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, (that was finally notified in panic only in the late hours of April 16, 2026) can be put into effect with the existing strength of the Lok Sabha from 2029 onwards. It is possible. It is desirable. It is essential,” he posted on X.

He said women's reservation was “never” the issue during the special session of Parliament.

“The agenda then was only (a) delimitation for the PM’s political preservation. It is now time for the PM to make amends for his sins of using India’s women to drive through his personal political agenda - and to instead deliver justice to them,” he said.

The Congress-led Opposition had earlier demanded that the government should call an all-party meeting after April 29 following the conclusion of polling in this edition of Assembly polls.

However, the government went ahead with a special sitting of Parliament between April 16 and 18 to pass the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026 but failed to muster two-third majority.