Union minister Kiren Rijiju said on Monday said there was no impropriety or irregularity in Parliament not being prorogued since the monsoon session ended in August as there was “no constitutional requirement” prescribing a specific period within which a House must be prorogued following its adjournment sine die.
The minister also denied the allegations that the government overlooked the Opposition or moved away from building consensus on critical issues. “The government has consistently sought the Opposition’s support and cooperation for the consideration and passage of the delimitation amendment bill. The government has reached out to the Congress party being the principal opposition party on several occasions. “…However, after repeated requests the Congress party didn’t give dates for discussion after which the government’s outreach had extended to other political parties. Consultations were held with representatives of parties including the DMK, SP. YSRCP, NCP. Claiming that the government already made sustained efforts for dialogue; the minister put the ball in the Opposition’s court, pointing out that it was now incumbent on them to cooperate.
In the letter, dated October 16, Kharge also demanded an all-party meeting regarding the government’s new delimitation proposals, and warned against rushing a Constitutional Amendment Bill (One Hundred and Thirty First Amendment Bill, 2026) without consultation. The government is pushing for the passage of the bill along with the delimitation bill to roll out 33% reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies, as well as expand the Lok Sabha. I wrote to you on 16 March 2026, 26 March 2026 and 12 April 2026 in this regard.
In a letter to Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, the minister also said that he had reached out to the Congress unsuccessfully and added that consultations were held with a number of other opposition parties, including the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and Samajwadi Party. Besides these written communications, I had also discussed the matter with you personally and sought your support and cooperation,” Rijiju said. Shiv Sena (UBT), AlMIM and BJD with a view to facilitating dialogue and building a broader consensus in support of the proposed legislation,” he said. In April after the constitutional amendment bill did not gather the necessary two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha, Modi compared the Opposition’s vote against the bill to “female foeticide”. He said the four main opposition parties- the Congress, the Samajwadi Party, the Trinamool Congress and the DMK- will face the consequences.
