The DMK-led Joint Action Committee meeting to ensure "fair delimitation" on Saturday urged the Centre to extend the freeze on Parliamentary constituencies, based on the 1971 Census population, by another 25 years.
The DMK-led Joint Action Committee adopted a resolution at the meeting held on Saturday which said that any delimitation exercise carried out by the Centre to improve the "content and character" of democracy should be carried out transparently, enabling political parties of all the states, state governments and other stakeholders to deliberate, discuss and contribute.
The JAC meeting was held to ensure "fair delimitation" that urged the Centre to extend the freeze on Parliamentary constituencies, based on the 1971 Census population, by another 25 years and decided that MPs would submit a joint representation to press for demands to Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the ongoing Parliamentary session.
The DMK informed that they have begun their reach out exercise on delimitation by way of advertisements in the social media.
The meeting was attended by CMs of Kerala, Punjab and Telangana--Pinarayi Vijayan, Bhagwant Manna and A Revanth Reddy, Karnataka deputy CM DK Shivakumar, and senior BRS leader KT Ramarao among others.
The resolution adopted at the JAC meeting said, "Given the fact that the legislative intent behind the 42nd, 84th and 87th Constitutional amendments was to protect / incentivise states which have implemented population control measures effectively and the goal of national population stabilisation has not yet been achieved, the freeze on Parliamentary constituencies based on 1971 Census Population, should be extended by another 25 years."
The states which have effectively implemented the population control programme and consequently whose population share has come down, should not be penalised and the Centre must enact necessary constitutional amendments for this purpose.
"The core committee consisting of Members of Parliament from the represented states will coordinate the parliamentary strategies to counter any attempts by the union government to undertake any delimitation exercise contrary to the principles mentioned above. The core committee of MPs shall submit a joint representation on the above lines to the Prime Minister of India during the ongoing Parliamentary session," the resolution said.
The political parties from different states represented in the meeting will initiate efforts to bring appropriate legislative assembly resolutions in their respective states on the issue and communicate the same to the union government.
"The JAC will also undertake necessary efforts to disseminate information on the history and context of past delimitation exercises and the consequences of the proposed delimitation among the citizens of their respective States, through a coordinated public opinion mobilization strategy."
DMK President and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Saturday favoured setting up an expert panel to draw up the political and legal action plan over the Lok Sabha delimitation issue. He also batted for "fair delimitation," asserting there was no problem with measures aimed at strengthening democratic representation.
States that have controlled population through various social initiatives and progressive welfare schemes, will lose parliamentary representation significantly due to this exercise, Stalin said.
Realising this first, the CM said he held a meeting on March 5, 2025 of all the parties in Tamil Nadu.
"I made it clear that if the existing 543 seats are reduced based on the current population, Tamil Nadu will lose 8 seats. If the total number of seats in Parliament is increased, Tamil Nadu will lose 12 seats as compared to the actual increase as per current representation. I said that this will be a direct blow to our political representation," he said.
The next day, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, addressing an event in Coimbatore, said that Tamil Nadu and other southern states will not lose parliamentary seats on a proportional basis and this was unclear and confusing, the CM said.
He alleged: "The BJP has always been a party that deprives states and state rights. They want to implement their ulterior motives in the delimitation plan. No state should allow this. Realising this threat, Tamil Nadu is working with unprecedented unity."
Urging similar unity, he proposed to rename the Joint Action Committee (JAC) over delimitation as the "JAC for fair delimitation."
"We are not against delimitation; the name itself will say that we are in favour of fair delimitation. This struggle will not end with us meeting – deliberating – and passing a resolution for one day. It is very necessary to take continuous action to establish rights."
Alleging that south India would lose political voice if the NDA government at the Centre carried out delimitation on population basis, Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Saturday said political parties and leaders of south must oppose any such move.
Addressing the meeting on the delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies convened by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin in Chennai, Reddy said "North will make us secondary citizens" if the delimitation exercise is implemented on a population basis.
"... we will not accept delimitation based on population because then states like UP, Bihar, MP, Rajasthan, will dominate rest of the country. We cannot accept it any cost," he said.
BJP is implementing a policy of ‘demographic penalty’, he alleged.
Though Telangana and other states respect the country's unity, delimitation based on population cannot be accepted as it will "politically limit us", he said.
He favoured not increasing Lok Sabha seats but carrying out delimitation within states.
Former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi implemented delimitation without increasing seats because it would have created an imbalance of political power between states, he said.
The NDA government led by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, in 2001, also executed delimitation in states without increasing seats and PM Narendra Modi must also do the same, he said.
The Telangana CM asserted that the Pro Rata formula would also not be acceptable to undertake delimitation.
"Pro rata formula will also hurt us. The problem of pro rata is that it changes the power gap. The central government is decided by a majority of one seat. We have a history of a Central government falling because of just one vote. So pro-rata formula will also hurt us politically," he said.
He suggested several measures for delimitation, including not increasing Lok Sabha seats for another 25 years, carrying out delimitation taking state as a unit, changing boundaries of LS seats inside the state based on the latest census, increasing SC, ST seats in states and providing 33 per cent women reservations in every state.
He claimed that it is time for Centre to end the "discrimination policy" against South and Punjab and to repay and reward these states for their "contribution in nation building for the last 50 years".
He observed that the South at present has 130 seats out of 543 seats which means a political proportion of 24 percent.
Political demand of the south is to increase this to 33 per cent of Lok Sabha seats after delimitation, he said.
He requested all southern states and Punjab to leave their differences and unitedly fight for this cause.
Highlighting that his government would soon pass a resolution in Telangana Assembly on the delimitation issue, Reddy urged those who attended the meeting to do the same in their state assemblies.
He proposed holding the next meeting of southern states and Punjab in Hyderabad.
"We will discuss how to take the fight forward. I will organize a public meeting of all leaders. Please join us there to continue this fight," he said.
The Telangana Chief Minister claimed that the southern states contribute more to the national exchequer but get lesser allocations.
For one rupee tax paid by Tamil Nadu, it gets back 26 paisa, while Telangana receives Rs 42 paisa for on rupee of tax paid, he maintained.
"But when Bihar pays Rs 1 tax, it gets Rs. 6.06, Uttar Pradesh Rs 2.03. Madhya Pradesh gets Rs. 1.73," he said.
Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president Y S Sharmila on Saturday claimed that delimitation based on population would render southern states "inconsequential", causing "irreparable loss".
She vowed that such a prospect would not be accepted at any cost.
Sharmila asserted that such an exercise would strengthen "North India라이브 바카라 dominance in Indian polity at the expense of South India."
She further emphasised that the southern states' opposition to delimitation "is not about politics but a fight for people's rights."
"If Parliament seats are divided based on population, the South will suffer an irreparable loss. North India's domination will further intensify, while the southern states will be rendered inconsequential," Sharmila said in a press release.
Biju Janata Dal (BJD) president and former Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik on Saturday said that population should not be the only criterion to determine the number of seats in Parliament and Assemblies and sought a detailed discussion with all parties before the commencement of the delimitation process.
Virtually addressing the first Joint Action Committee (JAC) meeting on delimitation convened by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, he said the BJD would do everything to protect the interests of the people of Odisha.
"Our stand is that population should not be the only criterion to determine the number of seats in the highest representative body of our country," he said.
Patnaik, a five-time former chief minister of Odisha, said: "I suggest that the Union government should take up a detailed discussion with all parties to remove any doubt on this very important issue that has far-reaching implications for our democracy."
The BJD has sent two of its leaders to Chennai to attend the meeting, while Patnaik addressed the gathering virtually.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Saturday said federal democracy was under threat due to the proposed delimitation, which will be done "solely on population".
He termed the delimitation exercise a political assault on southern states for controlling population growth, improving literacy and empowering women.
"The very foundation of our democracy—federalism—is under threat. The very pillars of our federal democracy, enshrined by Babasaheb Ambedkar and the visionary framers of our Constitution, are being dismantled brick by brick," Shivakumar said during a meeting on delimitation in Chennai.
On a call given by DMK chief and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, chief ministers, ministers and representatives of various political parties assembled in Chennai to discuss the fallout of the delimitation process.
The political parties in southern states are aggrieved that the delimitation based on population will render them powerless and they will have little say in the country as they will get less Lok Sabha seats compared to their North Indian counterparts.
"Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and every progressive state in this room faces a stark choice: submit to domination or rise in resistance. We choose resistance," Shivakumar said.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday termed the proposed delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies as a 'sword of Damocles' hanging over the states, especially in southern India, which reduced their population. He urged the Centre to engage in "meaningful dialogues" before going ahead with the process.
"Such a cut in seats for the south and an increase for the north will suit the BJP as it holds greater influence in the north," he contended.
Vijayan said that while the "political maneuvering" behind the sudden move was clear, it was imperative the union government consider the broader implications of its decision on Indian federalism and the preservation of the country's cultural and linguistic diversities.
In his speech during the meeting, the Marxist veteran refused to take at face value the Centre's argument that the states, which lowered their population, will get additional seats on a pro-rata basis.
"The Union has not been able to clarify whether this pro-rata distribution will be based on the current strength of parliamentary seats or on the basis of population figures. Therefore, the Union government should alleviate our fears.
"We need to ensure that the delimitation exercise is carried out in such a way that our current proportional share of seats in the Parliament is retained. This is the consensus that we all need to arrive at," he said.
Vijayan said that the central government has praised the states which implemented the National Population Policy of 1976 time and again for that achievement, but was now punishing them for the same.