Even as several of opposition MPs have joined the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the central government has no intention of bringing the 'One Nation, One Election' in the Monsoon Session of the Parliament that is set to begin next week, said sources on Friday. Furthermore, there is no clarity on whether the government is planning to introduce the Delimitation Bill and the Women's Reservation Bill in the upcoming session.
However, sources told India TV that the government believes that several of opposition MPs could support the two bills this time that would leave the Congress relatively isolated.
According to the sources, the government's immediate priority is to get the pending ordinances passed, including the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Bill, 2026, which is aimed at increasing the sanctioned maximum strength of the Supreme Court from 33 to 37.
The opposition to ONOE
The One Nation, One Election bill was introduced in the Parliament Winter Session last year but was referred to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) headed by BJP MP PP Chaudhary, whose tenure has been extended till August 10.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has, on multiple occasions, pushed for One Nation, One Election, stressing that it would save valuable time and resources that are spent on elections. However, opposition leaders have said that the government is trying to bring the bill in a haste and the legislation could not be passed in the Parliament without their support.
"Without the opposition's support, how can they bring out the bill? They have to discuss it with the Opposition. Let us have an idea about what they are going to bring, and then we will tell," said Congress MP KC Venugopal on Thursday.
Delimitation, Women's Reservation Bills
The Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026, which is linked to women's reservation, had failed to clear the test of Lok Sabha in the previous Parliament session. The bill had secured 298 votes in favour, while 230 MPs voted against it. The bill required a two-third majority to clear the Lok Sabha.
The opposition has said it is not against women's reservation, but criticised delimitation, arguing that southern states could lose their representation in the Parliament, questioning its methodology. However, the government has been repeatedly defending delimitation, while assuring that southern states would not lose representation.
The Parliament Monsoon Session will begin from July 20 and continue till August 13.
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