YS Jagan Mohan Reddy condemned the Lok Sabha’s defeat of the women’s reservation bill, stating it failed to deliver justice for women and South India, warning that delimitation could diminish the region’s representation.
The opposition BJD in Odisha remarked that “truth has prevailed” following the defeat of the Constitution amendment bill aimed at implementing 33 percent reservation for women in legislatures by 2029 and increasing Lok Sabha seats to over 800.
The voting saw 298 members in favor of the bill, while 230 MPs opposed it. With 528 members participating, the bill needed 352 votes for a two-thirds majority.
BJD president Naveen Patnaik had previously called for separating the Women’s Reservation Bill from the Delimitation Bill.
BJD’s parliamentary party leader Manas Ranjan Mangaraj stated on X, “Satyameva Jayate! Truth Prevails! It was not the Women’s Reservation Bill but the contentious Delimitation Bill (131st Constitutional Amendment) that was defeated in Parliament today.” He emphasized that this outcome was a significant victory for states like Odisha, which risked losing their rightful representation. He noted Patnaik’s proactive stance on the issue and his appeal to Odisha’s Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and all state MPs to unite for Odisha’s interests.
Mangaraj criticized the 20 BJP MPs from Odisha for failing to support the state’s rights, claiming they chose to follow party lines instead. He expressed pride in the BJD’s commitment to advocating for Odisha despite limited parliamentary representation.
BJD MLA and former minister Arun Kumar Sahoo remarked that the BJP’s attempts to claim credit for women’s reservation had failed, highlighting that Odisha’s former chief minister Biju Patnaik was the first in India to reserve 33 percent of seats for women in panchayati raj institutions.
In contrast, BJP MP Baijayant Panda argued that history would not favor those obstructing women’s empowerment. He criticized the INDI Alliance for opposing the women’s empowerment initiative, asserting that the #NariShaktiVandan Adhiniyam was a historic reform aimed at ensuring women’s rightful representation in democratic institutions. Panda emphasized that opposing this legislation was a regressive choice against the aspirations of millions of women across India.
