Lok Sabha Seats to Rise to 850 as Women's Reservation Bill Tabled

Opposition questions hike in Lok Sabha seats to 850 as women's reservation and delimitation bills were introduced in the Lok Sabha on Thursday, triggering sharp exchanges and a division vote before discussions began.

Bills Tabled in House

The Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-First Amendment) Bill, 2026, along with the Delimitation Bill and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, was introduced after a division yielded 251 votes in favour and 185 against. Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal tabled the main amendment, while Home Minister Amit Shah presented the UT Bill. Fifteen hours have been set aside for debate on April 16 and 17, with voting scheduled for 4 pm on Friday.

Heated Debate in House

Opposition parties, including Congress, DMK and Samajwadi Party, opposed the clubbing of the three bills and the move to link women's reservation with fresh delimitation. They argued the process bypassed a fresh census and could tilt representation towards populous northern states.

Congress Questions Seat Hike

Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi challenged the government on the figure of 850 seats, asking how the number was arrived at without a census or parliamentary paper. He said the party supported women's reservation but wanted it delinked from delimitation so it could be implemented immediately. Gogoi also accused the Centre of reluctance to conduct a caste census.

Akhilesh Pushes for Census

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav stated that his party backed women's reservation but demanded a census first to ensure fair representation, especially for women from backward classes and Muslim communities. He criticised the BJP for turning the issue into a “slogan” and questioned the absence of women in key positions within the ruling party's ideological parent organisation. Home Minister Amit Shah replied that religion-based reservation was unconstitutional and that the ongoing census would include caste enumeration.

Amit Shah Hits Back

Shah told the House that all three bills were essential to give effect to the women's reservation law. He said the Opposition had pre-decided to oppose the measures and was creating unnecessary uproar. Shah added that the Samajwadi Party was free to field Muslim women candidates if it wished and that the government had no objection.

BJP Defends Delimitation Plan

BJP MP Tejasvi Surya called the framework a “great deal” for southern states and accused the Opposition of spreading fear and misinformation in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and elsewhere. Tamil Nadu BJP leader K Annamalai asserted that delimitation would not be based on the 2011 census alone and could raise the state's Lok Sabha seats from 39 to 59. He dismissed protests by DMK chief MK Stalin as politically motivated.

Focus on Women's Empowerment

Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal described the bills as a historic step, quoting Dr B R Ambedkar on measuring a community's progress by the status of its women. The proposal reserves 273 seats, or one-third of the expanded House, for women, including sub-quotas for SC and ST women. The reservation will operate for 15 years initially, with rotation of seats. The current Lok Sabha has 75 women members.

The bills seek to raise the Lok Sabha's strength from 543 to 850, with states getting up to 815 seats and Union Territories up to 35 after delimitation. A new Delimitation Commission, chaired by a serving or former Supreme Court judge, will redraw constituencies whose decisions will not be open to judicial review.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to address the House later on Thursday, with Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra scheduled to speak after him. The developments come nearly three decades after the women's reservation issue first gained traction and mark the first major legislative push to operationalise the 2023 law through delimitation.