New Delhi

The Congress on Wednesday alleged that the BJP is striving for a two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha as its "real and ultimate target" is to be able to amend the Constitution for ending reservation.

In an exclusive interview with PTI Videos, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh claimed that the ruling party first wants to push delimitation in the garb of women's reservation with the ultimate objective being of ending reservation altogether.

Ramesh said if the government is really concerned about women's reservation it should implement the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam on the current strength of the Lok Sabha -- 543 --for the next general elections in 2029.

He alleged that Home Minister Amit Shah's efforts to split the TMC and Shiv Sena (UBT) vindicate the 2024 campaign of the Congress that the BJP wanted '400 paar' so that they can "amend the Constitution and finish off reservation".

Asked about the spate of defections in the opposition ranks, Ramesh said, "The single cause for this is the humiliation that the self-styled Chanakya of Indian politics suffered on the 17th of April in the Lok Sabha. He promised prime minister (Narendra Modi) that he would get the three delimitation bills passed. He could not muster more than 298 votes in the Lok Sabha."

Shah thought he could brazen it out and could bamboozle and bulldoze his way through but his bluff was called, Ramesh said.

"I think he decided to take revenge on that day for that humiliation he had been forced to suffer and now he is busy with the 'todh-phod ki rajniti'.He broke the TMC, he's breaking the Shiv Sena, all in his search for a two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha - you're seeing the truth of our 2024 campaign. They were asking for '400 paar' so that they can amend the Constitution to finish off reservation," the Congress general secretary in-charge communications said.

"That was the whole logic of '400 paar' and now you are seeing why he is splitting all these parties, he is splitting up parties in his search for a two-thirds majority to amend the Constitution," Ramesh claimed.

Asked if the BJP is striving for a two-thirds majority to target reservations, the Congress leader said the ruling party's immediate target is the delimitation bill but the real target is ending reservation.

"You look that in 2024 it was very clear what was happening. I mean the ultimate objective is to end reservation as the Constitution has provided and in spite of what the prime minister (Narendra Modi) says, you know the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh is on record as having said that reservation should be done away with, RSS leaders have weighed in against reservation," he said.

So, delimitation is the first milestone they want to pass but ultimately there are three years more left for this government, he said.

"They (BJP) want to amend the Constitution in diverse ways and one fundamental way they want to.... they have always been uncomfortable with this Constitution. Remember on the 26th of November, 1949 when this Constitution was adopted by the constituent assembly, the Organiser attacked it," he said.

"The effigies of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Dr. BR Ambedkar, Mahatma Gandhi, were burnt. Of course, Gandhi by then had passed away, but then you know he was also criticised for having inspired Dr. Ambedkar in joining the constituent assembly," he said.

So, all these founding fathers were attacked for having given us this Constitution, Ramesh said.

"The vote by the opposition in Parliament, bringing down the bills was against delimitation and not against women's reservation," the Congress leader said.

"All opposition parties unitedly voted against it. The home minister was humiliated. The PM was angry and it showed on his face. He criticised the Congress that it is because of the Congress that women's reservation is not being delivered. What had the Congress stated - that you should give women reservation on 543 seats," Ramesh said.

But the BJP's intention is not that, their intention is delimitation and the other target is that after getting two-thirds majority, they will end reservation, he alleged.

"Their real target is to remove reservation (for SCs, STs and OBCs) and not grant women's reservations," he claimed.

On whether the opposition would accept the formula of 50 per cent increase in Lok Sabha seats for every state if it is part of the bill, Ramesh said the issue is about how they are doing the delimitation.

"They did delimitation in Assam. They did delimitation in J-K. Will Gyanesh Kumar do delimitation? You have seen the 'jugalbandi' between the government and the Election Commission. The way the EC works, everyone knows that it does what the Home Minister says. Will you get the delimitation done by the EC which has a big blot on it in Bihar, West Bengal and UP," Ramesh said.

He said the Congress opposition was not just about the 50 per cent increase, it was also about what 800 MPs would do.

"In 500 odd MPs, they do not get a chance to speak and you want to get 815 MPs. For whom are you doing this? And what happens to the Rajya Sabha? There are questions about that and the government is silent," he said.

"We want that after the caste census, delimitation be done and the next Lok Sabha should be conducted on 543 seats with one-third reserved for women," he asserted.

"The Home Minister thinks he's going to get 348 which is the minimum required under various permutations and combinations - you require 2/3 of those presented voting. So even if you assume certain parties may not be present, in the worst case scenario, you still require 348 so far," he said.

Asked if the DMK would abstain, Ramesh said he is not going to predict what parties are going to do.

"All I know is that he (Shah) has broken the TMC. He's broken the Shiv Sena. He's gone from 298 to 26 more. That means he's reached 324. He still has a long way to go. I don't think he's going to get a two-thirds majority in this Lok Sabha. They will not get two thirds majority in future polls as well because the people -- Dalits, backward and adivasis -- know that they want a two-thirds majority to change the Constitution. Their (BJP's) advisors were themselves saying that they need a new Constitution," Ramesh said.

On April 17, the Constitution amendment bill to implement reservation for women in legislatures in 2029, and an increase in the number of seats of the Lok Sabha, was defeated in the Lower House.

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While 298 members voted in support of the Bill, 230 MPs voted against it. Of 528 members who voted, the bill required 352 votes for a two-thirds majority.