Suvash Choudhary/The Public World
New Delhi: A war of words has erupted on the social media platform ‘X’ between Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju over the role of women in the nation’s development and their empowerment through constitutional provisions.
The exchange began after Kiren Rijiju welcomed Rahul Gandhi’s recent remarks supporting women’s advancement. However, what began as a positive response has now turned into a political battle over the implementation of the Women’s Reservation Act, 2023, and its linkage with delimitation.
Rijiju Takes Dig at Rahul Gandhi
On Friday, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju responded to Rahul Gandhi’s message on women, saying that it appeared to be a positive message from the Congress Party.
Rijiju wrote: “This seems to be a positive message from the Congress Party. There’s a visible change of heart in Shri Rahul Gandhi Ji about the Women. Now, I hope Congress Party will support the Women’s Reservation Bill unconditionally.”
Rahul Gandhi responded sharply to Rijiju’s remarks.
Rahul Gandhi Reminds Rijiju of 2023 Law
Today, Rahul Gandhi took to ‘X’ and reminded the Union Minister that the Women’s Reservation Bill, 2023, had already been passed unanimously, with the support of the Congress.
Rahul Gandhi said:
“Mr. Rijiju, who would know better than you, as the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs—that the Women’s Reservation Bill 2023 has already been passed unanimously, with the full support of the Congress. The question is, why has it still not been implemented even after three years, and why do you now want to unnecessarily link it to delimitation? Implement the 2023 law. Without any conditions.”
Kiren Rijiju Responds Point-by-Point
Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju then issued a detailed response, explaining why the women’s reservation provisions have not yet been implemented and outlining the constitutional process through which women can benefit from reservation in the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies.
In his post, Rijiju stated:
“Rahul Ji, you know it very well that:
1. The reservation of seats for women in the House of the People and Legislative Assembly of the State is provided in the Constitution (106th Amendment) Act, 2023 (Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam).
2. It shall come into effect:
(a) After an exercise of delimitation is undertaken;
(b) Based on the census figures published after the year 2023, which means the census figures published after the year 2026.
3. The exercise for publishing the census figures after the year 2026 is currently underway; however, this may take substantial time, due to the caste-based census, to be finally published. In view of this, it may result in considerable delay in the implementation of women’s reservation—at least not before the 2034 General Elections.
4. Therefore, to implement women’s reservation in the next general elections in 2029, the delimitation exercise needs to be undertaken at the earliest, based on the latest available published census figures.
5. The implementation methodology has been proposed under the Delimitation Bill 2026, introduced in the Lok Sabha alongside the amendments to the Constitution.
6. However, the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026, which was introduced for this purpose, has been defeated.”**
Political Battle Over Delimitation Likely to Intensify
The political confrontation is unlikely to end with Rijiju’s latest response. Rahul Gandhi has arrived in Prayagraj today to interact with students, and another response from the Congress leader is expected.
The controversy is also likely to intensify over the Delimitation Bill 2026, particularly after the failure of the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026 to secure passage in Parliament.
The Narendra Modi-led Central Government is seeking to advance the constitutional changes required for the proposed implementation mechanism, while the Congress and other opposition parties have mobilized against the move.
There are also political claims that the BJP-led government is attempting to secure the required two-thirds majority in Parliament by creating splits within various other political parties, following which another attempt could be made to pass the Constitutional Amendment Bill.
With the government and opposition preparing their respective political strategies, the dispute over women’s reservation, delimitation and the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026 has entered a crucial phase.
The sharp exchange between Rahul Gandhi and Kiren Rijiju over the past two days is increasingly becoming part of the larger political battle over the future implementation of women’s reservation and the proposed delimitation process.
