FOLLOW US: @TheStatesmanLtd @thestatesmanltd thestatesman1875 www.thestatesman.com People’s Parliament, Always in Session India’s National Newspaper since 1818 | Pages 16 | ` 5.00 | KOLKATA | NEW DELHI Bill to tweak women’s quota law defeated in Lok Sabha VIBHA SHARMA New Delhi, 17 April O pposition MPs on Friday stuck a spanner in the Narendra Modi government’s move to fast-track the Women’s Reservation Bill ~ the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam ~ by defeating the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026. The bill required more than a two-thirds majority for passage ~ a special majority comprising two-thirds of members present and voting, and more than 50 per cent of the total membership of the House. The Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill 2026 received 298 votes for and 230 votes against. The government needed 352 votes to get the legislation passed. Following the defeat of the main bill required to implement the women’s quota by the 2029 Lok Sabha elections, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju withdrew the other two related bills ~ the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, and the Delimitation Bill, 2026. “The Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill did not pass as it did not achieve a two-thirds majority during voting in the House,” Speaker Om Birla said. “The other two Bills cannot be viewed in isolation,” Mr Rijiju said, telling the Opposition that it missed an opportunity to support the rights of women. NDA leaders also protested in the Parliament premises as the amendment bill failed to pass the Lok Sabha’ test. Earlier, the Lok Sabha witnessed an intense debate, replete with high drama and sharp exchanges, over the issue of delimitation and women’s reservation, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah warning the Opposition that they would have to face the anger of the “matra shakti” and the Opposition accusing the government of trying to “reshape the electoral map of India”. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also made a last-minute appeal to all Members of Parliament, urging them to support the bill. “Crores of women are watching us,” he posted on X earlier in the day. According to the Constitution Amendment Bill, Lok Sabha seats were to be increased to a maximum of 850 from the current 543 to “operationalise” the women's reservation law before the 2029 parliamentary polls, following a delimitation exercise based on the 2011 Census. Before the bill was put to vote, Union Home Minister Amit Shah replied to the debate, asserting that while the Opposition may not support the bill, “women of the country are watching ~ desh ki mahilayen dekh rahi hain unke raste ka roda kaun hai.” He said the legislation aims to implement 33 per cent reservation for women in a time-bound manner by the 2029 Lok Sabha elections, while upholding the principle of “one person, one vote, one value”. • Related reports: Page 5 | MUMBAI | BHUBANESWAR Mamata backs women’s quota, opposes delimitation: | LUCKNOW | SILIGURI | Saturday, 18 April 2026 Merlin ‘land scam’ probe: I-T steps in as ED continues raids I-T sleuths raid places linked to TMC candidate, two other leaders: Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday announced her party’s support for the Women’s Reservation Bill but issued a strong warning against linking it with the proposed delimitation exercise, saying the Trinamul Congress (TMC) would not accept any such move. Addressing a public meeting in Dum Dum, Miss Banerjee said: “We will support the Women’s Reservation Bill. But do not try to bring anything else along with it. We will not allow that.” Miss Banerjee underlined that passing a constitutional amendment requires a two-thirds majority in Parliament and questioned the intent behind combining the two issues. Page 2 Kolkata: The Income Tax Department on Friday raided multiple premises including the residence of Trinamul Congress MLA Debasish Kumar as also the homes and offices of two other leaders of the party. Sources said officials began the searches early in the morning at Kumar’s residence on Manoharpukur Road in south Kolkata. Simultaneously, searches are being carried out at his election office located nearby, as well as at a party office on Motilal Nehru Road. Meanwhile, another team of I-T Department officials searched the residence of Trinamul Congress leader Kumar Saha at Kalighat. I-T officials also searched the Elgin Road residence of local Trinamul leader Miraj Shah. Page 3 STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Kolkata,17 April The Enforcement Directorate on Friday carried out fresh searches at four locations linked to the Merlin Group in Kolkata, while the Income Tax Department too raided premises associated with the embattled real estate company, intensifying the ongoing probe into alleged illegal land deals. I-T officials also raided premises linked to TMC MLA Debasish Kumar. The twin action by central agencies comes less than a week before the first phase of the West Bengal Assembly elections on 23 April, pushing the land-grab probe into the centre of a political storm. According to the ED, searches under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act are being carried out at multiple premises in Kolkata in connection with its ongoing investigation into the Merlin Group. The locations include residences linked to Sushil Kumar Dhandhania and Vijay Kumar Dhandhania at Middleton Street, premises of DC Paul Group Construction Private Limited in Salt Lake, and residences of its director Kamlini Paul and former director Shanti Ranjan Paul. The agency is probing allegations of money laundering • Turn to Page 3