Amit Shah slams opposition for stalling women’s quota bill, warns of ‘wrath of women’ in 2029 polls

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday slammed the opposition for failing the women's reservation bill in Lok Sabha, warning parties of ‘wrath of women’ in 2029 General Elections.

"Today, a very strange scene unfolded in the Lok Sabha. The Congress, TMC, DMK, and Samajwadi Party did not allow the passage of the essential Constitution Amendment Bill for the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam," he said in a post on X, adding that the rejecting the bill that would grant 33% reservation to women, celebrating it, and raising victory cries over it is truly "reprehensible and beyond imagination".

Also read: Lok Sabha rejects women's reservation proposals under the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill 2026


The Constitution (131st Amendment) Amendment Bill got 298 votes in favour and 230 against it, hence the bill did not pass, failing to get the 2/3 majority.

Shah noted that the women of the country would not get the 33% reservation in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies now, which was their right.

"The Congress and its allies have done this not for the first time, but repeatedly," he said, adding that the parties' mindset is neither in the interest of women nor of the country.

Also read: Delimitation Bill 2026 shelved after women’s reservation amendment fails in Lok Sabha

"I want to tell them that this insult to Nari Shakti will not stop here; it will travel far and wide. The opposition will have to face the 'wrath of women' not only in the 2029 Lok Sabha elections, but at every level, in every election, and at every place," the home minister said.

As per an ANI report, the leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi reached out to TMC General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee to consolidate the opposition's stance. Sources within the AITC confirmed to ANI that Gandhi held a telephonic conversation with Banerjee shortly after the session.

"After the Bill was defeated, Rahul Gandhi called Abhishek Banerjee to thank him for playing a crucial role in defeating this Bill," a top AITC source told the news agency.

The collapse of the 131st Amendment also led to the immediate stalling of the government's broader legislative agenda for the day, which included the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 and the Delimitation Bill, 2026.

"The Constitution (131st Amendment) Amendment Bill did not pass as it did not achieve a 2/3 majority during voting in the House," Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said while announcing the results of the division.

Soon after Shah's remarks on social media, Minister of Trade and Commerce Piyush Goyal also launched a jibe at the opposition, saying that the political cost of this betrayal will be paid, not just in the 2029 Lok Sabha elections, but at every ballot across the country.

Calling the scene as "deeply disturbing and disgraceful scene," Goyal said, "This is not opposition politics, but a calculated betrayal of India’s women. What exactly were they celebrating? The celebration of patriarchy and the suppression of women’s rights is reprehensible, beyond imagination, and utterly disgraceful."

By stalling this bill, the opposition parties have denied women their rightful representation in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies, he noted.

"Their mindset stands exposed, neither aligned with the interests of women nor with the aspirations of a rising India. This insult to our Nari Shakti will neither be forgotten nor forgiven. It will travel far and wide, echoing across every constituency, every state, and every election," Goyal said.