The government proposes to introduce two Constitution Amendment Bills in the Lok Sabha during the ongoing Budget session to bring key changes to the women’s reservation law. The amendments seek to delink the Census exercise from the law and amend the Delimitation Act, 2002, to enable the formation of a Delimitation Commission by June this year, which will take into account the 2011 Census data.The Tribune had reported last week that the Union Cabinet had cleared the proposed amendments in the women’s reservation law.The move is aimed at advancing the implementation of women’s reservation in the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies by two years to 2029, ahead of the next General Election. Once the Census is delinked from the law and the Delimitation Commission is constituted, the rollout of reservation can be expedited, sources said.If the amendments are carried out, the total number of seats in the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies is likely to increase significantly. The Lok Sabha’s strength could rise from 543 to around 816 seats.Sources said as both are Constitution Amendment Bills, they will require a two-thirds majority in both Houses of Parliament. The government has begun informal consultations with various parties to secure support.Home Minister Amit Shah held informal discussions with Opposition leaders and NDA allies on Monday regarding the proposal.Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge had earlier written to Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, seeking an all-party meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to deliberate on the issue.Under the provisions of the Nari Shakti Abhinandan Adhiniyam, passed in 2023, 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies is linked to the completion of the next Census and subsequent delimitation, making 2031 the likely timeline. However, since the proposed 2027 Census is expected to be completed only by the end of next year, the government is seeking to delink the Census requirement to advance implementation to 2029, when the next Lok Sabha elections are due.The proposed Delimitation Commission, to be set up after amending the Delimitation Act, 2002, would carry out fresh delimitation based on 2011 Census data. This could increase the Lok Sabha’s strength to around 816 seats, of which nearly 273 may be reserved for women.