New Delhi, July 15 (IANS) Veteran Congress leader P. Chidambaram on Wednesday accused the BJP of “wooing” the DMK and the NCP-SP in order to gain numbers for the smooth passage of the131st Constitution Amendment Bill, which was defeated in the Lok Sabha during the Budget session of the Parliament in April. However, while the DMK refused support to the BJP, the latter hit back at the former Union Minister.

Taking to X, Chidambaram claimed that the BJP is planning to reintroduce the 131st Constitution Amendment Bill during the upcoming Monsoon session of the Parliament.

“The failed Bill purported to reserve for women one-third of the seats in the Lok Sabha and the State Assemblies but its real purpose was to pave the way for delimitation and, possibly, gerrymandering of constituencies,” he alleged.

He underlined that the Constitution was already amended by the Constitution 106th Amendment Act to provide reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and the State Assemblies, “hence there was — and there is — no need for a new Bill to provide reservation for women”.

Lashing out at the BJP, the Congress leader alleged: “After splitting the Trinamool Congress, the BJP is reportedly wooing the NCP-SP and the DMK to garner the crucial votes to support the new version of the failed Bill.”

While maintaining that the NCP-SP and the DMK have been “clear-headed about the real purpose of the failed Bill and it is expected that they will stand firm in the future too”, he cautioned both the parties that “any support to a new version of the failed Bill — whose real purpose is delimitation — will be a betrayal of their own conscience that guided them in April 2026”.

Responding to Chidambaram’s remarks, DMK spokesperson T.K.S Elangovan asserted: “DMK will not support the BJP. They may seek our support, but we will not extend it.”

However, BJP leader Rohan Gupta hit back at the veteran Congress leader.

“Chidambaram seems to have nothing else to do. As a loyal Congress leader, he has taken it upon himself to advise other parties. How could he advise the DMK or the NCP-SP? When the Congress had the opportunity to stand by the DMK, it let them down. Now, it is trying to tell them what they should or should not do,” Gupta told IANS.

He advised the Congress to “improve its own image”.

“Why would any party trust the Congress? Even parties in the INDIA bloc have realised that they cannot fully rely on the Congress because they believe that, whenever it suits its own interests, the Congress may abandon its allies,” he added.

BJP leader Gourav Vallabh said: “Did someone from the NCP call Mr. Chidambaram? Did someone from the DMK call him?”

“His (Chidambaram) problem is that the women of India, our mothers and sisters, should not get their rightful due,” he remarked.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Nana Patole backed Chidambaram’s remarks, while accusing the BJP of “breaking up” the NCP and the Shiv Sena.

Referring to the 2017 statement of BJP leader Anantkumar Hegde regarding the Constitution, Patole said: “BJP’s intentions are not clean because during the Lok Sabha elections, a slogan of ‘Crossing 400 (seats)’ was raised. The reason for that was exactly what Hegde had openly said—that ‘we need to cross 400 because we have to change the Constitution’. So, they want to change the constitutional framework, and that is why these kinds of attempts are ongoing.”

–IANS

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