mk-stalin-calls-7-state-leaders-to-chennai-on-delimitation

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has invited seven chief ministers, including Bengal’s Mamata Banerjee and Punjab’s Bhagwant Mann, to form a joint action committee against the Centre’s proposed delimitation exercise. 

The invite also extends to Odisha’s BJP CM Mohan Chandra Majhi and key opposition leaders from various states.

The meeting is set for March 22 in Chennai, where they will discuss their collective response. Stalin argues that delimitation unfairly reduces the parliamentary representation of states that have successfully controlled population growth.

Stalin’s objection to delimitation

Stalin calls the proposed exercise a “direct attack on federalism,” stating that it penalizes states like Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Karnataka while rewarding states with higher population growth. He believes this will weaken the voice of the southern states in Parliament.

He reminded leaders that in 2002, when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was Prime Minister, an amendment was passed to freeze the total number of Lok Sabha seats at 543 until at least 2026. However, the Centre’s new plan could change this, potentially increasing the seats beyond 800 and redistributing them based on population.

If this happens, states with lower population growth could lose seats, while northern states, where population growth is higher, could gain more seats.

 

Also read: Stalin: BJP-led Centre pays lip service to Tamil for votes

Stalin questions Amit Shah’s assurance

Union Home Minister Amit Shah recently assured that southern states would not lose Lok Sabha seats. However, Stalin questioned the guarantee, pointing out that the Centre had not ruled out increasing seats for northern states, which would still reduce the relative influence of Tamil Nadu and others. Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah also dismissed Shah’s statement as “misleading.”

Appeal to PM Modi

Earlier this week, Stalin wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging that any delimitation exercise be based on the 1971 population data and frozen for another 30 years. This, he argues, would encourage all states to maintain population control.

Tamil Nadu’s political parties, except the BJP and its allies, supported this resolution. Even actor Vijay’s political outfit, TVK, participated in the discussion.

The debate over delimitation has intensified, with some DMK leaders even suggesting newlyweds have more children to boost Tamil Nadu’s population.

 

Also Read: Stalin seeks assurance from PM Modi on delimitation