Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, party Member of Parliament Supriya Sule, daughter of Sharad Pawar, said the party would discuss the legislation only if the government placed the proposed 50 percent formula in writing.
"Give the 50 percent condition on paper, then we will discuss," Sule said.
She clarified that the party had not yet received the proposed legislation and therefore could not take a final position on it.
"The bill is still not with us. I can't speak on the bill unless it is with us. We'll study the bill when it comes and give our verdict," she said.
Sule revealed that she attended an all-party meeting convened by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju to discuss the proposed legislation. The meeting was also attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. According to Sule, the government informed participating leaders that it had also held discussions with the Samajwadi Party, the Congress, and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.
Recalling the discussions, Sule said the Women's Reservation Bill had previously been passed unanimously and added that Kiren Rijiju had invited her, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Arvind Sawant, and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen president Asaduddin Owaisi to the meeting. She said Amit Shah and Kiren Rijiju informed them that the government had a proposal under consideration.
Sule cautioned that any delimitation exercise based solely on population could result in injustice to southern states. She stated that Amit Shah and Kiren Rijiju had put forward a proposal for a 50 percent formula applicable to every state, which she described as an important aspect of the ongoing discussions.
Her remarks came amid growing speculation that the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) could support the delimitation legislation in Parliament and eventually move closer to the ruling National Democratic Alliance. However, Sule firmly rejected those reports and reaffirmed the party's commitment to the opposition alliance.
"There are several rumours about us. All information is source-driven. Our party is being maligned. There is no question of us going anywhere. We are in the INDIA alliance," she said.
The clarification coincided with senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram's allegation that the Bharatiya Janata Party was attempting to secure the support of the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam for the proposed 131st Constitution Amendment Bill, which the government intends to introduce during the Monsoon Session of Parliament.
In a post on X, Chidambaram claimed that after the split in the Trinamool Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party was now trying to persuade the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam to secure the crucial votes required for the revised version of the bill that had previously failed. He urged both regional parties not to support the proposed legislation.
The proposed constitutional amendment had earlier been defeated in Parliament after the government failed to secure the mandatory two-thirds majority required for its passage. Since the previous parliamentary session, the ruling National Democratic Alliance has strengthened its numerical position following splits in the Trinamool Congress and the Shiv Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray. Despite those gains, the alliance remains short of the two-thirds majority needed to pass a Constitutional Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha.
At the same time, strained relations between the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the INDIA alliance, following the Congress party's electoral understanding with Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam in Tamil Nadu, have fuelled expectations within the Centre that the southern party could extend issue-based support to the proposed legislation.
With the government preparing to reintroduce the proposed constitutional amendment during the Monsoon Session, the stand of key regional parties, including the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, is expected to play a decisive role in determining whether the legislation can secure the constitutionally mandated two-thirds majority in Parliament.
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