We need a fair delimitation: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Stalin

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin addresses the joint action committee meeting on the issue of Lok Sabha constituency delimitation, in Chennai. Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan and Telangana CM Revanth Reddy are also seen.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Saturday demanded a fair delimitation. “We are not against delimitation,” he said in his opening remarks at the first Joint Action Committee (JAC) meeting on delimitation in Chennai.

Flanked by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Telangana CM Revanth Reddy, Stalin said today’s meeting was a ‘defining’ moment. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwat Singh Mann, Karnataka’s Deputy CM DK Shivakumar also attended the meeting. Balwinder Singh Bhunder, Working president of Shiromani Akali Dal, and PMA Salam, General Secretary of Indian Union Muslim League Kerala, were also present.

At the meeting Stalin said the delimitation of constituencies should not happen as per the current population. This will only reduce people’s representatives in the Parliament. “All of us should be firm in opposing this process,” he said.

“We should all be absolutely sure that “delimitation based on the current population cannot be accepted.” Every state here has shown significant progress through population control. This move is going to punish such states. By reducing the number of people’s representatives, our voice will be muffled,” he said.

“The reduction in the number of parliamentary seats or the reduction in our representation would invariably lead to a reduction in our political strength. It is not just about numbers – it is about our power, our rights, and the interests of our future. If we allow the number of constituencies to be reduced or our representation to be reduced, we risk becoming disempowered citizens in our own country. That is why I say that the issue of delimitation should not be taken lightly.

“Let me make one more thing clear – we are not against any measure that strengthens democratic representation. But we are saying that such a measure should not affect the fair political representation of our states. This protest is not against delimitation; I think everyone will agree that this protest is for fair delimitation,” he said.

On Friday, in a video message on the meeting, Stalin said if the delimitation happens with the present population, Tamil Nadu and other states will lose representation in the Parliament. “This will strike at the foundation of federalism in India and voices in Parliament will be silenced. Our rights will be compromised,” he said.

The meeting was to unite all the states that would be affected by delimitation. The meeting will chart the future course of action, Stalin said.

Meanwhile, the Tamil Nadu BJP protested against DMK for giving away the state’s rights and said, the delimitation meeting was a drama.

Kerala CM Vijayan said the BJP is going ahead with the delimitation without any consultation. If the delimitation process is undertaken after the census will lead to a large increase in the number of seats of northern states. The Centre’s arguments that our states will have additional seats on a pro-rata basis cannot be taken at face value. It has not been able to clarify whether this pro-rata distribution will be based on the current strength of Parliament seats or on the basis of population figures.

“The Union Government should alleviate our fears. It is the Union’s responsibility to refrain from unilateral measures and preserve the essence of democracy and federalism. We need to ensure that delimitation exercise is carried out in such a way that our proportional share of seats in the Parliament is retained,” he said.

Telengana CM Reddy at the meeting said, “We are one country, we respect it. But we cannot accept this proposed delimitation because it will politically limit us. It will punish us for being performing states. We have to stop BJP from implementing any unfair delimitation.”

State BJP President K Annamalai on JAC meeting told newspersons that since the DMK government has come to power, the state’s interests have been sacrificed for political gain. CM Stalin has not gone to Kerala to speak with his Kerala counterpart to solve critical issues like the Mullaperiyar dam. However, he has invited him to talk about an artificial issue, he said.

Published on March 22, 2025