New Delhi, 16 July (H.S.): Congress President and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to convene an all-party meeting ahead of the upcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament to discuss the Women's Reservation and the related Delimitation Bill. Kharge said that if the government intends to reintroduce the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026 in a revised form, it should first hold comprehensive consultations with all political parties.
In his letter sent to the Prime Minister on Thursday, Kharge stated that during March and April he had repeatedly written to the Parliamentary Affairs Minister requesting an all-party meeting to discuss the proposed delimitation framework, but those requests were not accepted. He noted that the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026 failed to secure the required two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha on April 17 and therefore could not be passed.
Kharge further said that media reports indicate the Centre is preparing to reintroduce the revised Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill during the forthcoming Monsoon Session. In view of this, he urged the government to discuss its revised proposals on delimitation with all political parties and provide them sufficient time to study the proposed changes.
He appealed to the Prime Minister to convene an all-party meeting before the Bill is introduced in Parliament so that political parties can examine the proposed amendments in detail and present their views.
The Monsoon Session of Parliament is scheduled to commence on July 20. Ahead of the session, the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) held a strategy meeting on Wednesday under the chairmanship of Sonia Gandhi. The meeting was attended by Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, and other party MPs, during which the opposition's strategy and the issues to be raised during the Monsoon Session were discussed.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
