Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah demands clarification on Amit Shah's remark on delimitation

His statement appears to be aimed at creating confusion in the southern states, said Siddaramaiah.

Bengaluru: Terming Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement on delimitation as not trustworthy, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday demanded the Centre to clarify whether it (delimitation) will be based on the latest population ratio or current number of Lok Sabha seats.

In the statement Siddaramaiah said, “Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s claim that southern states will not be disadvantaged in the delimitation process is not trustworthy. His statement appears to be aimed at creating confusion in the southern states. Going by his vague remarks, it seems that either he lacks proper information or there is a deliberate intent to disadvantage the southern states, including Karnataka, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh.”

If delimitation is carried out based on the latest population ratio, it will be a severe injustice to the southern states. To prevent that, previous delimitation exercises were attempted using the 1971 census as the basis, following Constitutional amendments. “For the past 50 years, southern states have effectively controlled population growth while progressing significantly in terms of development. Meanwhile, northern states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh have failed to regulate population growth and continue to lag in development,” he said.

According to Siddaramaiah, if delimitation is based on the latest census, southern states, including Karnataka, may see a reduction or stagnation in their number of Lok Sabha seats, while northern states will gain more seats. “Several studies have been conducted on the impact of delimitation. According to those studies, if delimitation is based solely on the latest census then the number of Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka is likely to decrease from 28 to 26. Similarly, in Andhra Pradesh seats would drop from 42 to 34, Kerala from 20 to 12, and Tamil Nadu from 39 to 31. But in Uttar Pradesh they may increase from 80 to 91, Bihar from 40 to 50, and Madhya Pradesh from 29 to 33,” Siddaramaiah opined.

He further said that, “Looking at the extraordinary enthusiasm shown by Narendra Modi’s government for delimitation, it appears that the real intent is to punish the people of the southern states for resisting his party’s dominance. To further silence the voices of southern states in Parliament and prevent them from raising their concerns at the national level, the BJP-led Union government has now taken up the new weapon of delimitation.”

Calling upon the people of Karnataka to unite and raise their voice against the injustice, Siddaramaiah said, “It is crucial for all Kannadigas to set aside differences of caste, religion, and political ideology and unite with a single voice against the injustice being inflicted upon the state by the Union government. Discussions are already underway with the southern states to wage a comprehensive fight against these injustices. In the coming days, a coordinated movement will be launched in collaboration with all affected states.”