Kiren Rijiju meets Rahul Gandhi to end House logjam, Congress firm on stand against delimitation

Sources said Rijiju, during his nearly 50-minute meeting with Rahul, raised the government’s pending legislative agenda, including the proposed amendment to Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) and the possible reintroduction of a constitutional amendment Bill linked to the Delimitation Bill to explore ways to ensure their passage.

The government, sources said, did not get any commitment from the Opposition side, which reiterated its demands that Union Home Minister Amit Shah make a statement in the House on the police action on protesting students and youths in Delhi on July 20 and that Parliament discuss the alleged donation theft at the Ram temple in Ayodhya.

There was thus little indication that the deadlock would end anytime soon. Congress sources said the party leadership categorically told Rijiju that it was opposed to delimitation at this juncture and that its stance remains the same. Rijiju asked the Congress to reconsider its position.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Rijiju said, “I’ve extended an offer to the LoP to engage in a conversation even if there are differences between the ruling side and Opposition. Let’s see what the Opposition is coming up with. But, as of now, there is no proposal to extend the ongoing session.”

Government sources said the situation would become clearer in a couple of days, while Congress leaders said the Opposition parties would deliberate on the issues raised by Rijiju before Parliament reconvenes on Thursday morning.

The Congress top brass has decided to consult other Opposition parties, including those which are not part of the INDIA bloc, to firm up their joint stand. Sources said informal discussions are continuing with even the DMK, which has charted a separate course during this session. The DMK has been upset with the Congress over its decision to snap ties with it and join hands with the Vijay-led TVK to form a government in Tamil Nadu after the recent Assembly elections.

The Congress camp however believes that the DMK, which had vocally opposed delimitation, would not shift its stance. “(Former Tamil Nadu CM) M K Stalin had burned a copy of Delimitation Bill in April, terming it a black law. How can they support the Bill now? We don’t think the DMK will do that,” a senior Congress leader told The Indian Express.

Sources said there could be another round of discussion between Rijiju and Rahul following which both sides may work out their respective strategies.

The government’s outreach has fuelled speculation that it may convene a special session after the Monsoon Session to consider and pass the contentious Bills. There is also a buzz that the ongoing session could be cut short and reconvened again after the Independence Day celebrations to take up the pending Bills. Sources said both the Houses may even be adjourned this week without specifying the next meeting date. “This will make the next meeting, whenever it is, a continuation of the Monsoon Session and we can carry forward with the pending legislative business,” said a source.

Congress insiders, however, said no such proposals were conveyed by Rijiju to Rahul during their meeting.

Rijiju went to the LoP’s office in the Parliament complex for the meeting, during which senior Congress leaders Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and K C Venugopal were also present.

“Rijiju came with the government’s agenda – the Prime Minister’s agenda. But we are very clear about our demands and the issues we want to discuss. We want a discussion on the ‘chanda chori’ scam. We have also been demanding a statement from the Union Home Minister, who is responsible for the police firing and atrocities against students,” Venugopal told reporters after the meeting.

Rijiju described the meeting as a “courtesy” call. “It was not on a specific issue. We had a good discussion. I am hopeful,” he said when asked whether the meeting could end the logjam.

The government’s outreach came after 12 working days of Parliament were virtually washed out, marked by repeated disruptions and the passage of several Bills without debate. It came two days after the BJP suffered setbacks in bypolls in two of its strongholds — Bankipur in Bihar and Datia in Madhya Pradesh.

So far in this session, Parliament has passed three Bills — the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, the Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, and the Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Bill.

While the Congress projected Rijiju’s meeting with Rahul as a “climbdown” by the government, the BJP accused the Opposition of obstructing Parliament. Speaking in the Lok Sabha after the House passed the Bankers’ Book Evidence Bill, 2026 amid din Wednesday, Rijiju said: “It is clear that the Opposition does not want to run the House. Important Bills are being passed without discussion because of the Opposition.”

Referring to the Opposition’s demand for a discussion on the Ram temple donation row, the minister charged: “The Congress, Left parties and the Samajwadi Party (SP) are against Bhagwan Ram. They have always insulted and opposed Lord Ram. They objected to the Ram temple in Ayodhya and came wearing black bands. Now they are disrupting the House. They should apologise to the nation.”

Senior BJP leaders said the government is keen to break the impasse to push key legislation. “We want the FCRA Amendment Bill to be passed. We also have the Constitution 131st Amendment Bill to implement the Women’s Reservation law and the Delimitation Bill on our agenda. The government has intensified efforts to break the deadlock,” a senior BJP leader said.

Asked whether Rijiju had raised the pending FCRA amendment Bill during the meeting, Venugopal referred to remarks made by US Republican Congressman Riley Moore. “Now you will see Narendra Modi’s mood change. The Opposition in India has been demanding answers on the FCRA amendments. But now he will listen to a diktat from a foreign country,” he claimed.

Moore, a Congressman from West Virginia, has alleged that the proposed FCRA amendments would enable the Indian government to take over “churches and religious charities”. In a social media post, he described the proposed changes as “a clear attack against Christians” and warned that they could become “a point of major concern” in the India-US ties.

The FCRA amendment Bill has drawn criticism from several Opposition parties and civil society groups over its “potential adverse impact” on NGOs, minority-run organisations and educational institutions.

The BJP has been trying to muster the required two-thirds majority to revive the Constitution 131st Amendment Bill to advance the implementation of the women’s reservation law to 2029, alongside a Delimitation Bill proposing to expand the Lok Sabha from the existing 543 to around 850 seats. The government had failed to pass the constitutional amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha during the extended Budget Session due to lack of numbers.