Ministers Must Resign If Jailed for Over 30 Days: 130th Constitution Amendment Bill Introduced

On August 20, 2025, Union Home Minister Amit Shah introduced the 130th Constitution Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha. According to the bill, if the Prime Minister, a Chief Minister, or any Minister remains in judicial custody continuously for more than 30 days, they must resign or will be dismissed on the 31st day.

The government's rationale is that it is against democratic ethics for leaders facing serious criminal charges to remain in power while in jail. However, the opposition parties, including the Congress, strongly opposed the bill.

In a surprising move, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor supported the bill, saying, “If someone is in jail for 30 days, how can they continue as a minister? It’s common sense.” He also welcomed the decision to send the bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for further deliberation.

On the other hand, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra called the bill “unconstitutional,” arguing that the central government could misuse it to arbitrarily jail and remove opposition Chief Ministers.

During the debate, Congress MP K.C. Venugopal criticized Amit Shah’s past tenure in Gujarat and questioned his moral authority. Shah responded sharply and supported the proposal to send the bill to the JPC.

The Lok Sabha passed Shah’s motion, referring three bills — the 130th Constitution Amendment Bill, 2025, the Union Territories Government (Amendment) Bill, 2025, and the Jammu & Kashmir Reorganization (Amendment) Bill, 2025 — to the Joint Parliamentary Committee for review.