3 min readUpdated: Apr 18, 2026 02:07 PM IST
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju on Saturday said the defeat of the women’s reservation Bill in Lok Sabha on Friday was “black spot” on the Congress and that the party will have to bear the brunt of the anger of the women of the country. Countering the Congress’s demand for status quo on delimitation, Rijiju said the Delimitation Act was a “copy-paste” of the process started by the party when it was in power.
He said the Delimitation Act would have specified the formation of a delimitation commission and other procedures. “The rules are the same as those specified during the Congress era… Every time delimitation has taken place the same amendment has been copy pasted. It’s the same law,” Rijiju said.
Earlier outside the Parliament, he said: “The Congress and the Opposition will have to bear with the anger of the women of the country. The black spot put on them will never be washed off. This was a historic bill to give a seat to women in Parliament and the Assembly. What could be the reason to oppose this? This was a black day for the country…”
#WATCH | Delhi: On the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill failed to pass in the Lok Sabha, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju says, “Congress party and the opposition will have to bear with the anger of the women of the country. The black spot put on them will never be… pic.twitter.com/HYxiUxE6hA
— ANI (@ANI) April 18, 2026
Later in the day, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said that the failure to pass the women’s reservation and delimitation Bills in Parliament marked a “black day” for the BJP. “It’s a Black Day for them (Centre) because they’ve felt a shock for the first time, which they deserved,” she said.
‘Congress leaders hailed Bills, Rahul Gandhi opposed’
Rijiju further said Congress leaders had approached him and said that the government was well-intentioned in introducing the Bills. “But they said ‘what can we do if Rahul Gandhi doesn’t understand’,” Rijiju said.
“If Rahul Gandhi says that giving reservation to women is unconstitutional and undemocratic then someone should make Rahul Gandhi understand that how it can be undemocratic to give rights to women. I can’t reply on what kind of thinking he has.” “We are hurt women’s rights was crushed by Congress; this is a huge loss for the women of our country,” he added.
VIDEO | Delhi: Responding to Congress MP and LoP Rahul Gandhi’s remark, Unjon Minister Kiren Rijiju (@KirenRijiju) says, “If Rahul Gandhi says that giving reservation to women is unconstitutional and undemocratic then someone should make Rahul Gandhi understand that how it can… pic.twitter.com/1bKLRGeW9P
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) April 18, 2026
