Mumbai, April 20 (IANS) The Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray (UBT) on Monday claimed that the defeat of a constitutional amendment bill for delimitation in the Lok Sabha, ‘which was presented under the guise of women’s reservation’, exposed the government’s “deceptive tactic”.

The Thackeray camp in the party’s mouthpiece, ‘Saamana’, said the administration relied on its “Modi hai to mumkin hai” (Modi makes it possible) mantra, “allegedly attempting to secure votes through defection or absence, but ultimately fell short”.

“Following the bill’s failure, Prime Minister Modi put himself on a ‘theatrical’ display in a national address, which was unacceptable as it aimed at insulting the opposition. PM chose to address the nation during active Assembly elections in five states, which was a blatant violation of the Model Code of Conduct. While the BJP government celebrated the passage of the Women’s Reservation Act in 2023, the current impasse stems from the refusal to implement the 33 per cent quota within the existing 543-seat framework. Opposition leaders have termed the government’s stance as pure hypocrisy and a national disease of falsehood,” said the editorial.

According to the editorial, the bill proposed increasing Lok Sabha seats from 543 to 850. That was not a move for women’s rights, but a “protective armour” to ensure permanent power by disproportionately increasing seats in northern Hindi-belt states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh. The proposal triggered a fierce backlash from Southern India. Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister warned of intense protests, drawing parallels to the linguistic agitations of the 1950s and 60s.

“Statistical analysis highlights the disparity. Under the proposed 50 per cent increase, Tamil Nadu’s seats would rise from 39 to 59, while Uttar Pradesh’s would jump from 80 to 120. This would widen the gap between the two states from 41 to 61 seats, leading to accusations that the Prime Minister is fostering a ‘North vs South’ divide,” claimed the editorial.

The editorial further stated it exposed a “culture of male dominance within the BJP and the RSS, suggesting women are only valued for their votes”.

Furthermore, the editorial contrasts the current government’s actions with the history of the Congress party, which appointed women like Annie Besant and Sarojini Naidu as presidents over a century ago and produced India’s first female Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi. Despite the rhetoric, the current President was notably not invited to the inauguration of the new Parliament building or the Ram Mandir consecration in Ayodhya.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena emphasised the stark contrast between high-level political manoeuvring and the lived reality of women in India. In tribal hamlets across Maharashtra, pregnant women still lack basic healthcare, often forced to give birth in makeshift slings while being carried to distant facilities.

Drawing a parallel to 1970, when Indira Gandhi dissolved the Lok Sabha following a one-vote defeat on a constitutional amendment to seek a fresh mandate, the opposition suggests Prime Minister Modi should do the same. “They argue that if the government truly cared about women, the Prime Minister would resign and allow a capable woman to lead”, said the editorial.

“As the BJP initiates protests over the collapse of women’s reservation, opponents maintain that the defeat of the 2026 Delimitation Bill was a necessary victory for Indian democracy,” the editorial said.

–IANS

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