The delimitation exercise – originally scheduled for 2026 – redefines the number of representatives a state sends to the Lok Sabha based on population. Union minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said that no southern state, including Tamil Nadu, will see a reduction in Parliamentary representation due to the delimitation exercise. The delimitation exercise – originally scheduled for 2026 – redefines the number of representatives a state sends to the Lok Sabha based on population.
Shah’s assurance at a rally in Coimbatore comes a day after Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin called an all-party meeting in Chennai on March 5 to discuss the delimitation exercise, which he referred to “as a sword hanging over southern states”. “I want to reassure the public of South India that Modi ji has kept your interest in mind to make sure that not even one seat is reduced pro rata,” Amit Shah said. “Whatever increase is there, Southern states will get a fair share, there is no reason to doubt this.” In Wednesday’s speech, Amit Shah also denied CM MK Stalin’s charge that the Narendra Modi-led government has been denying central funds to Tamil Nadu.
“There is no truth in MK Stalin’s statement. The Modi government has given Rs5 lakh crore to Tamil Nadu in the last five years,” Shah said. “The chief minister often claims that the state has faced injustice at the hands of the Centre. However, a comparison of funds disbursed under the UPA and NDA reveals that the real injustice happened during the UPA regime,” he added. Amit Shah also asserted that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will form a government in Tamil Nadu in 2026. “Get ready for the formation of a NDA government in Tamil Nadu. In 2026, we will establish an NDA administration. This new government will usher in a new era for Tamil Nadu. We will put an end to nepotism in the state. Corruption will be eradicated in Tamil Nadu…” Shah said.
MK Stalin on delimitation
On February 25, Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin said that the impending delimitation of Lok Sabha seats is a sword hanging over the southern states as he called an all-party meeting in Chennai on March 5 to discuss the politically contentious issue. The CM said 40 registered political parties in the state will be invited for the all-party meeting. “Tamil Nadu succeeded in population control through the family planning programme. Just because the population is less, there is a situation of the Lok Sabha seats being cut down (in TN). We stand to lose eight seats and as a result, we would be having only 31 MPs, and not 39,” he said. A 2019 analysis by Milan Vaishnaw and Jamie Hintson of Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, projected that a delimitation exercise could see the overall strength of the Lok Sabha rising to 668, with Uttar Pradesh alone seeing its tally increase from the current 80 to 143 by 2026. In contrast, Tamil Nadu, which currently sends 39 representatives, could see the number rise to just 49. Kerala, which sends 20, would see no change at all.
To be sure, the Union government has not announced the timeline for delimitation or of the census which has to act as the basis for the exercise.
