Chennai, Aug 8 (IANS) Members of Parliament who attended a consultation convened by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay on Saturday called for abandoning any fresh delimitation exercise, arguing that it could adversely affect the parliamentary representation of Tamil Nadu and other southern states.
The meeting, held at Kalaivanar Arangam in Chepauk and chaired by Vijay, came amid speculation that the Union government could move towards a fresh delimitation of parliamentary constituencies.
However, major parties, including the DMK and AIADMK, boycotted the consultation.
Nineteen MPs belonging to the Congress, VCK, Left parties, IUML and MDMK attended the nearly two‑hour meeting and discussed the possible implications of delimitation for Tamil Nadu. Congress MP Sudha did not attend as she was participating in a party meeting in Karnataka.
Speaking to reporters after the consultation, VCK leader Thol Thirumavalavan said the MPs who attended were unanimous that the proposed delimitation exercise should be dropped and that the existing strength of the Lok Sabha should remain unchanged. He said, “Delimitation should be abandoned. The number of constituencies should continue at the present level of 543. All the MPs who participated in the meeting insisted on this in one voice.”
The participating MPs expressed concern that a population‑based redistribution of Lok Sabha seats could penalise states such as Tamil Nadu that have performed relatively well in controlling population growth over the past several decades. They argued that states which successfully implemented national population‑control policies should not lose their political representation in Parliament as a consequence.
Congress MP Manickam Tagore also warned that a fresh delimitation exercise could significantly affect Tamil Nadu’s representation at the national level. He alleged that the proposed exercise was part of a political strategy by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and RSS. He said Tamil Nadu should strongly resist any attempt to reduce its relative representation in Parliament.
Vijay convened the consultation with the stated objective of building a common position among Tamil Nadu MPs on an issue that could have long‑term consequences for the state’s political representation.
However, the absence of the DMK and AIADMK highlighted political divisions over the Chief Minister’s initiative, even as opposition to any reduction in Tamil Nadu’s parliamentary representation remains a broadly shared position among several parties in the state.
–IANS
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