With only four days remaining in the Monsoon session, the fate of major legislation on women's reservation, delimitation and the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) remains uncertain amid the continuing logjam in Parliament.
None of the three bills figured in the Lok Sabha's list of business for Monday, underlining the difficulty facing the government as it seeks to make progress on its legislative agenda.
While some opposition parties have shown signs of softening their position on the women's reservation and delimitation bills following the government's outreach, the Congress and most of its allies have vowed to oppose any move to bring the legislation, as well as the FCRA Amendment Bill, for passage.
The Constitution Amendment Bill, which proposes 33% reservation for women from 2029 and a redrawing of Lok Sabha constituencies to expand the House, was defeated in April after failing to secure the required two-thirds majority.
The FCRA Amendment Bill, 2026, introduced in the Lok Sabha on March 25, is yet to be taken up for discussion and passage.
"If the central government thinks they can cook up and introduce the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill within these two or three days, they should keep that wish to themselves," AICC general secretary KC Venugopal said on Sunday.
Venugopal alleged that the proposed legislation targeted minorities and NGOs and said the Opposition would not allow it to be passed.
"Even if Amit Shah comes to pass this anti-people bill, there is no doubt that he will have to face strong protests in Parliament. This bill is unconstitutional and anti-people. We will not allow such an anti-people and unconstitutional bill to be passed," he told reporters in Alappuzha.
The FCRA Bill seeks to significantly tighten oversight of foreign-funded organisations, including through the creation of a new authority with powers to seize and manage the assets of non-profits that lose their licence. It has faced strong opposition from Christian organisations as well as political parties.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday recalled how 146 MPs were suspended during the 2023 Winter Session of Parliament, when several significant laws were passed with minimal opposition present, and asserted that "history should not repeat itself".
The warning comes against the backdrop of continuing opposition protests over the government's handling of the NEET paper leak issue. Opposition parties have demanded a statement from Home Minister Amit Shah on police action against students protesting over the issue.
With no sign of a breakthrough, the Monsoon session appears headed for a near-complete washout.
The session, which began on July 20, has been marked by repeated adjournments and little substantive business. The main exception has been the debate on the Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, which was passed by both Houses.
Three other bills were passed by the two Houses with little or no debate, while two more were passed by the Lok Sabha amid continued opposition protests.
The Opposition's initial protests focused on the NEET paper leak and allegations of theft of donations at the Ayodhya Ram temple. It later pressed for a discussion on police action against students protesting over the paper leaks and demanded the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Home Minister, along with statements from them.
Government outreach fails to break deadlock
The government made several attempts last week to reach out to opposition parties and its allies, seeking support for the women's reservation and delimitation bills. Those efforts have so far produced little progress.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju met Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi twice in an attempt to end the impasse and also spoke to him by telephone.
Sources said that when Rijiju sought Congress support for the women's reservation and delimitation bills, the Leader of the Opposition insisted on an all-party meeting on the proposed legislation.
The two leaders also sparred on social media on Saturday over the women's quota and delimitation bills.
Government floor managers are also trying to gauge the views of other opposition leaders, including Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and the DMK leadership.
However, DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin on Friday told a television news channel that his party had neither supported the delimitation bill in the past nor would it support it in the future.
The DMK is no longer part of the INDIA bloc after the Congress joined the TVK government in Tamil Nadu. With 22 Lok Sabha members, it has emerged as the third-largest Opposition party in the Lower House. In the Rajya Sabha, its eight members make it the second-largest Opposition party.
A meeting called by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay and attended by a section of the state's MPs on Saturday adopted a resolution against delimitation and demanded that the number of Lok Sabha seats remain frozen at 543. The meeting was boycotted by the main opposition party, the DMK, and the AIADMK.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), which left the ruling NDA six years ago over the now-repealed three agriculture laws, on Saturday extended its support to the women's reservation and delimitation bills, calling for a uniform 50% increase in seats for states.
The Punjab-based party has only one Lok Sabha MP.
The SAD's statement came a day after party chief Sukhbir Singh Badal met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, prompting speculation that it could rejoin the NDA ahead of next year's state Assembly elections.
NCP (SP) working president Supriya Sule on Saturday said it would be premature to comment on the delimitation bill.
"When it comes, we will discuss every Bill with our alliance partners," she said.
She opposed the FCRA Bill in its present form, saying foreign funding could not always be viewed with suspicion, and urged the Centre either to withdraw it or refer it to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC).
Sule also said that a delegation of eight NCP (SP) MPs would meet the Prime Minister at his Parliament office on Monday.
Following her statement, the Congress asked Sule to use her scheduled meeting with the Prime Minister to make the INDIA bloc's opposition to linking implementation of the Women's Reservation Act with delimitation "unequivocally clear".
DMK chief MK Stalin also urged the Centre to withdraw the FCRA Bill and said a delegation led by party MP P Wilson had recently met Shah to press the demand.
Numbers remain a problem
A three-day special sitting was convened from April 16 to 18 to seek Parliament's approval for the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill. It was the first bill under the Modi government to be defeated.
The bill fell short of the constitutionally mandated two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha, with 298 members voting in favour and 230 against.
The government's numbers have since improved marginally.
The NDA's strength in the Lok Sabha now stands at 299 following the merger of seven Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs with the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena.
Among the 20 NCPI MPs, three Muslim lawmakers remained non-committal about their allegiance towards the NDA.
The government, however, remains well short of the 360 votes required to pass a constitutional amendment based on the current effective strength of the House.
There is another view that even if the women's reservation and delimitation bills are delayed until the Winter Session, there would still be enough time for their implementation before the 2029 Lok Sabha elections.
For now, however, the immediate challenge is simply getting Parliament to function.
The Congress on Friday issued a whip to its MPs in both Houses, asking them to be present on August 10, 11 and 12 as "very important" issues would be taken up for discussion. It also conveyed to all its INDIA bloc allies that their MPs should remain present on all three days, sources said.
Four bills have been included in the Lok Sabha agenda for Monday: the Tribunals Reforms Bill, 2026; the Minerals and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026; the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026; and the National Co-operative Development Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2026.
(With inputs from PTI)