New Delhi: Congress MP Shreyas M Patel reiterated the party's opposition to delimitation before 2026, stating that the INDIA Alliance, along with Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, has taken a collective stance against the move.
He emphasised that the resolution passed in the recent Joint Action Committee (JAC) meeting underscores concerns from the southern region regarding delimitation and affirmed that all alliance partners are united on the issue.
Speaking on the outcome of a recent Joint Action Committee meeting, Patel said, "Our INDI Alliance, along with Deputy CM DK Shivakumar, held a meeting. The resolution which passed in that meeting is that the delimitation should not happen till 2026, to urge the government. Coming to that, all our INDIA Alliance abide by the decision taken by that committee because the southern region is facing problems with delimitation. We stand with our alliance partners."
This comes after the JAC on Saturday urged the Union Government to extend the freeze on the number and state-wise distribution of Lok Sabha seats for another 25 years beyond 2026 and engage with all stakeholders before carrying out the exercise.
The issue of delimitation, which involves redrawing parliamentary and assembly constituencies based on population data, has raised concerns in several southern states.
Political leaders from the region argue that the process could disproportionately impact their representation in the parliament in comparison to northern states, where population growth has been higher.
Congress and other INDIA Alliance partners have been vocal in opposing any immediate changes, asserting that the current distribution should remain unchanged until at least 2026.
After the first meeting of the Joint Action Committee on delimitation, a resolution was unanimously adopted which asserts that "any delimitation exercise carried out by the Centre should be done "transparently" and after discussion and deliberation with all stakeholders.
The delimitation issue has sparked concerns among Southern leaders, who believe the process is an attempt to reduce their states' importance. Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin has written a letter arguing that delimitation should only occur after the next national census, scheduled for after 2026.
Earlier, Union Minister G Kishan Reddy on Sunday dismissed the Joint Action Committee (JAC) meeting on the delimitation issue as a "baseless" and "time pass" exercise aimed at maligning the BJP.
He confidently predicted that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) would form governments in Karnataka, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu in the next elections.
Speaking to reporters, Reddy said, "It was a baseless meeting. It was a time pass. It was only an attempt to malign the BJP. In the next elections, NDA will form the government in Karnataka, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu as well."
The meeting was attended by various political leaders, including Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Odisha Congress President Bhakta Charan Das, and Biju Janata Dal leader Sanjay Kumar Das Burma, among others.
The MK Stalin-led Tamil Nadu government locked horns with the Central government over the three-language formula proposed in the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the delimitation exercise.
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