Congress to raise Ram Temple donation issue, oppose delimitation Bill in Parliament

The alleged donation theft at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, and the “systematic corrosion” of educational institutions, were among the key issues identified by the Congress parliamentary strategy group on Thursday (July 16, 2026) for the forthcoming monsoon session of Parliament.

The party also resolved to strongly oppose any attempt by the Centre to reintroduce the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, which proposes to increase the strength of the Lok Sabha and initiate the delimitation exercise.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge also wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to convene an all-party meeting before any revised version of the Bill is introduced.

NDA steps up push for numbers ahead of delimitation Bill, Opposition closes ranks “I would, once again, request you to convene an all-party meeting to discuss the government’s revised proposals on delimitation, etc., and give us adequate time to study them in detail before they are introduced in Parliament,” Mr.

Kharge said in his letter.

In a post on social media platform X after the meeting, Mr.

Kharge said the party would hold the government accountable over the alleged “chanda chori” (donation theft) at the Ram Temple, paper leaks, the “systemic corrosion” of the education system, institutional capture, the breaking of political parties, corruption, inflation, foreign policy failures, ethanol blending, deforestation, and the alleged assault on the rights of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, and minorities.

The strategy meeting, chaired by Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, was attended by Mr.

Kharge, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, K.C.

Venugopal, P.

Chidambaram, Jairam Ramesh, Shashi Tharoor, Manish Tewari, Kumari Selja, Gaurav Gogoi, and Manickam Tagore, among others.

Parliament panel seeks changes to Bill on removal of PM, CMs and Ministers after 30 days in jail Addressing a press conference, Congress’s communications chief Jairam Ramesh alleged that the Union government was attempting to revive the delimitation Bill after failing to secure the required two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha in April.

“The Congress party has consistently maintained that it will strongly oppose the delimitation Bill and will continue to do so.

We will also make every effort to maintain the unity and solidarity of all Opposition parties,” he said, adding that the party would also oppose the proposed Constitutional amendment relating to the removal of Ministers facing 30 days of custody.

The Congress would oppose the proposed Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, any amendment to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, and proposed changes to the National Food Security Act, if they were introduced during the session, Mr.

Ramesh said.

“We are completely opposed to these proposed amendments, and if the Bill is introduced during this session, we will strongly oppose it.

As far as the legislative agenda is concerned, I do not see any Bill before us that we can support,” Mr.

Targeting Union Home Minister Amit Shah, the Congress leader accused Mr.

Shah of “splitting parties” to manage two-thirds majority by “cunningness”.

“This is not just an insult to the Constitution but such a majority would be a blot on democracy,” Mr.

Mr.

Gandhi and Mr.

Kharge were in touch with all the parties that had supported the Congress on April 16 and 17 in defeating the government’s delimitation Bill, he added.

The Opposition Indian National Developmental, Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc will also hold its strategy meet on Monday (July 20, 2026), ahead of the start of the monsoon session, to evolve its joint strategy.