'Victory for Constitution': Priyanka Gandhi after delimitation-linked women's quota bill fails in Lok Sabha

New Delhi: Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday said the Opposition defeated the intent of the Modi government's plans to "permanently cling to power" in the guise of empowering women, calling the defeat of the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026 in Lok Sabha as a "victory" for the Constitution and unity in the I.N.D.I.A bloc.

Addressing a press conference after Parliament adjourned sine die, Priyanka reiterated the Opposition demand for rolling out the women's reservation in Lok Sabha and Assemblies on the basis of the current strength of the Lok Sabha while claiming that the formula put forward by the government was unacceptable to them.

She said it was clear from the outset that it was not about women's quota but delimitation, which will be conducted in a way that "ignores caste data and allows complete arbitrariness", and it was "impossible" for the Opposition to support this. "I am very happy that the country saw how a united opposition can defeat them," she said.

The press conference by fielding Priyanka made it clear that the Congress is not leaving any stone unturned in the narrative war against the BJP, which is accusing the Opposition of being "anti-women" in opposing the Bill. Other Opposition parties will also be holding similar press conferences.

Asked about the BJP campaign, she said, "the public is intelligent. Times have changed. Media campaigns and PR no longer work like before. People can see the truth. No one can rely on Amit Shah's assurances in Lok Sabha. The public's faith in them is eroding. They are not taking such assurances on face value."

"Yesterday was a very big victory for democracy. The conspiracy of the government to change the federal structure and weaken democracy was defeated and stopped. This was a victory for the Constitution, a victory for the country, and a victory for the unity of the opposition," she said referring to the falling of the Bill as the government could not muster a two-third majority.

She said the intention behind bringing the now defeated Bill became "very clear" from the speeches of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah when they warned that the Opposition will never get power or win elections if they do not support the government.

"This was a conspiracy planned in such a way that they could remain in power permanently. If this was not done now, then by 2029 what they wanted to achieve through delimitation based on the 2011 census would not be possible. So they were planning how to stay in power permanently, and how to use women. If passed, it would serve one purpose and on the other hand, it would give them full freedom to manipulate constituencies through delimitation based on the 2011 census, without recognizing caste census data," she said.

"They thought if it passes, it’s a win; if it doesn’t, they can label other parties as anti-women and present themselves as messiahs of women. But becoming a messiah of women is not easy -- you have to prove it...The history of BJP regarding women is very clear. Standing in Parliament and saying otherwise does not change that. Women are watching," she said, referring to incidents of crime against women in Unnao, Hathras and Manipur.

She said the Opposition will support the government to pass a Bill if the proposal is about reserving one-third seats for women from among the existing 543 seats. "We will clearly say on every platform—bring back the 2023 legislation, make necessary changes, and we will fully support it...If there is reservation for women, then like SC/ST quotas, there must also be proportional OBC reservation," she said.