The Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026, the Delimitation Bill, 2026, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 were introduced in the Lok Sabha on Thursday after the Opposition pressed for a division against the move to introduce the three Bills instead of a voice vote.

Secretary General of the Lok Sabha Utpal Kumar Singh had explained the procedure of casting ‘AYES’, ‘NOES’, or ‘ABSTAIN’ votes through the respective systems in the Lok Sabha. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla initiated the division on the motion to introduce the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-First Amendment) Bill, 2026.

The Opposition members in the Lok Sabha had pressed for a division against the move to introduce the Bills.

As per the final division, there were a total of 251 AYES and 185 NOES out of 333 votes cast. With the 251 AYES majority, all three Bills were introduced in the Lok Sabha.

The Lok Sabha primarily uses voice voting, but if challenged, a division is called, where the Automatic Vote Recorder (Ayes, Noes, Abstain) is utilised.

Vote slips were used in the Lok Sabha following the division, in which 333 members voted with no abstentions. The distribution stood at 251 AYES and 185 NOES.

The government has convened a special sitting of Parliament on April 16, 17 and 18 to pass the amendment to the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam.

The government has been seeking Opposition support for passing the amendment bill to implement the women’s reservation from the 2029 Lok Sabha polls on the basis of the 2011 census.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had urged Opposition parties to support the amendment to ensure the women’s reservation comes into effect from the 2029 general elections.

“This is the wish of every sister and daughter of this country, and we must fulfil it with unanimity,” he said at an event in Dehradun on Tuesday.

Published on April 16, 2026