Tamil Nadu’s MK Stalin Raises Stakes Over Delimitation, Calls 7 State Leaders To Chennai
Chennai:
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Friday called on seven counterparts, including Bengal’s Mamata Banerjee, Punjab’s Bhagwant Mann, and BJP-ruled Odisha’s Mohan Chandra Majhi, to join a ‘joint action committee’ of political parties against the delimitation exercise proposed by the centre.
He has also asked Kerala’s Pinarayi Vijayan, Karnataka’s Siddaramaiah, Telangana’s Revanth Reddy, Andhra Pradesh’s Chandrababu Naidu, as well as senior politicians from non-ruling parties and the BJP in each of these states, to a meeting in Chennai on March 22 “to chart a collective course”.
“Delimitation is a blatant assault on federalism, punishing states that ensured population control by stripping away our rightful voice in Parliament. We will not allow this democratic injustice!” he said on X.
The Union Govt’s plan for #Delimitation is a blatant assault on federalism, punishing States that ensured population control & good governance by stripping away our rightful voice in Parliament. We will not allow this democratic injustice!
I have written to Hon’ble Chief… pic.twitter.com/1PQ1c5sU2V
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) March 7, 2025
Ahead of an election in Tamil Nadu next year, Mr Stalin and his government have been vociferously protesting the centre’s ‘Hindi imposition’ and delimitation, arguing neither is necessary and, combined, amount to an attack on the federal nature of the Constitution and on the Tamil people and language.
READ | “Sword Over South States”: MK Stalin On Delimitation, ‘Hindi Imposition’
The centre has refused both charges, countering the ‘imposition’ claims by saying the new National Education Policy and the three-language formula does not force any student to study Hindi, and deflecting criticism of delimitation by insisting the southern states will not be disadvantaged.
Stalin’s Letter To 7 Chief Ministers
Mr Stalin’s proposed meeting is expected to address the latter concern, which the Tamil Nadu leader warned could diminish the influence of states that have managed to control population levels.
In his letter, he pointed out that delimitation exercises after 1976 had been put on hold by a 2002 amendment, passed when the BJP’s Atal Bihari Vajpayee was Prime Minister – that said changes to the overall number of Lok Sabha seats – now 543 – would be frozen till at least 2026.
However, the centre’s plan for a delimitation now, with current data, means states that have controlled population could face a reduction in the number of Lok Sabha seats allotted, while others, including BJP-ruled states in the north, will get more because of vastly increased populations.
“Delimitation math is simple and sobering. Reports suggest the exercise is being considered based on population (and) with two potential approaches. In the first case, the existing 543 seats will be redistributed. In the second, the total number could be increased beyond 800.”
“In both scenarios, states that have successfully implemented population control measures stand to lose significantly if the exercise is based on post-2026 population levels,” Mr Stalin wrote.
READ | “Delimitation Based On 1971 Census…”: Tamil Nadu All-Party Meet To PM
“We should not be penalised for effectively controlling population growth…”
On Amit Shah’s Assurances
The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister was also critical of assurances provided by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who had insisted the southern states would not lose a single Lok Sabha seat.
READ | “South Won’t Lose Any Seat”: Amit Shah’s Big Promise On Delimitation
Mr Stalin, though, was not convinced, pointing out the Home Minister had not also said northern states, or any others, would not get more instead, thereby still reducing the importance of Tamil Nadu.
He isn’t the only one to have spoken out; last month Siddaramaiah criticised Mr Shah’s clarifications on delimitation, calling his assurances “unreliable” and “misleading”. He accused the BJP of using delimitation as a “tool to weaken southern states that had resisted its dominance”.
MK Stalin’s Appeal To PM Modi
Mr Stalin’s letter to the seven chief ministers follows an appeal this week to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in which he asked the Prime Minister to ensure that delimitation, if to be done now, is based on 1971 population data and then frozen for 30 years to motivate other states to control growth.
TTN NEWS Explains | What Is Delimitation And Why Is Tamil Nadu Wary Of It?
This was part of a resolution tabled by Tamil political parties, a meeting the BJP and its local allies boycotted. Actor Vijay’s TVK, seen as a dark horse for next year’s state election, attended.
The resolution also sought assurances that any increase in number of MPs will be based on the same proportion – MPs to states – as laid out based the 1971 census.
READ | “Babies Now…”: Stalin’s Message For Newlyweds Is Delimitation Jab
The delimitation row has gathered pace in the build-up to the next election, with DMK leaders even urging newlywed couples to have more children to up the state’s population count.
With input from agencies
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