J&K CM Omar Abdullah announced the INDIA bloc will meet to decide its stance on the Women's Reservation Bill and delimitation. He alleged the previous J&K delimitation was skewed to benefit the BJP and questioned the intent of the new bill.
INDIA Bloc to Decide on Women's Bill, Delimitation
Speaking to reporters, Abdullah said the National Conference alone cannot make a decision on the issue and would discuss its position within the opposition alliance. "At 3 pm today, there is a meeting of the INDIA bloc at the residence of Kharge Sahib. I will be taking part in that meeting in Delhi. We will speak in the meeting about what the National Conference will do on this issue, because we alone cannot do anything. The INDIA bloc together will decide its response to this bill in Parliament," he said.
He also raised concerns over the delimitation exercise, alleging that constituency boundaries in Jammu and Kashmir had earlier been drawn in a way that benefited a particular political party. "They say that delimitation will prove helpful, but through delimitation, an attempt was made to benefit one party. The way constituencies were drawn here, it was to benefit the BJP. If this bill is being brought with the same intention, then it will benefit only the BJP. We have to see all this. The INDIA bloc needs to decide its response to this bill," he added.
Handicrafts Exhibition to Boost Tourism
The Chief Minister also inaugurated a two-day Handicrafts and Handloom Exhibition in Srinagar and said the initiative would help boost tourism and showcase Kashmir's traditional crafts. "This is the beginning of our tourism season. We are introducing new things to interest the tourists. Through this exhibition, the tourists will be able to witness all the crafts of Kashmir at one place now," Abdullah said.
Broader Opposition and Delimitation Concerns
He further said that the government is working on introducing a new incentive policy to promote manufacturing units in the region. Meanwhile, Congress will hold a parliamentary strategy group meeting on Wednesday at party president Mallikarjun Kharge's residence, 10 Rajaji Marg in New Delhi, ahead of the special sitting of the Parliament to discuss proposed amendments to the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023.
While supporting the 33 per cent reservation for women legislators in the Lok Sabha and state legislatures, Congress has opposed the proposed Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026, to carry out the delimitation exercise in the Lok Sabha. As the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, is linked to the delimitation process in the Lok Sabha, the government has proposed to increase the number of seats in the House to 850, with 815 seats proposed for the States and the remaining 35 for the Union Territories. The Lok Sabha has 543 seats at present.
Opposition leaders have flagged that the proposed Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026, does not increase the seats in the Lok Sabha on a pro-rata basis and will allegedly shrink the representation of southern states in the House. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has also called an emergency meeting of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) MPs today to discuss the impact of the delimitation exercise on the state. The special sitting of Parliament will begin on Thursday, April 16. (ANI)
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