Freeze number of Lok Sabha seats at 543 till 2056, says Tamil Nadu CM Stalin

Tamil Nadu all-party meet proposes JAC of political parties from South India to take up the just cause.

Chennai: Intensifying Tamil Nadu’s Opposition to Delimitation solely on the basis of population, an all-party meeting on Wednesday demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi give a categorical assurance in Parliament that the freeze on the number and state-wise distribution of seats in Lok Sabha will be extended for another 30 years beyond 2026.

The meeting, chaired by Chief Minister M K Stalin who has been adding layers to his fight against the BJP-led Union Government, also decided to constitute a Joint Action Committee (JAC) with members of parties from all South Indian states that are represented in Parliament to create awareness among people and take up this “just cause” as a battle in every forum.

Boycotted by BJP, its ally TMC, and Tamil nationalist outfit NTK, the all-party meeting was attended by representatives of AIADMK, Congress, Left, VCK, and TVK led by actor Vijay among others. All the participants said the exercise solely based on population of states should not be allowed to take place and expressed their support to the Stalin dispensation’s efforts to ensure that the rights of Tamil Nadu are not compromised with.

Actor Kamal Haasan said that Delimitation on the basis of population will convert India into “Hindia” while PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss asked Stalin to meet CMs of southern states in person to mount a joint offensive against the Centre, ruled by BJP, his senior ally.

Even if Parliament seats are increased, Stalin said, the Centre should ensure that Tamil Nadu’s representation in both houses of Parliament must rise proportionally as per the existing framework i.e. the 1971 population figures. “No manipulation or dilution of our rightful political voice will be acceptable. Tamil Nadu’s existing percentage of seats, 7.18 per cent of the total, must not be reduced under any circumstances,” he added.

The unanimous message that came out of the meeting was that Southern states such as Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, and Telangana should not be “punished” for controlling population diligently and the political representation of states that failed to keep check on population shouldn’t get increased.

The all-party meeting by Stalin is an attempt to project him as the champion of state rights, rally Southern states, mostly ruled by members of the I.N.D.I.A. alliance behind him, and isolate the BJP politically in Tamil Nadu by raking up Delimitation which is due in 2026 but is unlikely to be undertaken until the Census due in 2021 is conducted.

The unabashed attack on the Union Government, Stalin believes, will also help the DMK’s strategy to project the 2026 assembly election battle as one between Tamil Nadu and Delhi (Centre).

Asserting that Tamil Nadu wasn’t against Delimitation but wouldn't allow the exercise to be used as a “disguised weapon” against progressive states, Stalin said it was gross injustice to reduce the political representation of South Indian states only because they acted in national interest by controlling population.

“Like how A B Vajpayee as Prime Minister assured in 2000 that the 1971 population-based seat allocation will continue till 2026, Narendra Modi should also give an unequivocal assurance in Parliament that the freeze on the number of seats in Lok Sabha (at 543) will continue for the next 30 years beyond 2026 (till 2056),” the Chief Minister added.

The meeting also nudged the BJP-led Union Government to follow-up the assurance by amending the Constitution to ensure the rights of Southern states.

Stalin also told the meeting that his government will approach all political parties with MPs in South Indian states to form a Joint Action Committee to immediately take up this “just cause as a battle in every forum and mobilise all necessary support.”

Except the BJP and its ally TDP, all other parties in the South are expected to join Tamil Nadu’s efforts to put up a joint resistance against Delimitation.

If the strength of the Lok Sabha is increased to 848, Tamil Nadu should gain 22 additional seats to maintain proportional representation but it would only get 10 seats if the 2011 Census figures are taken. “This will suppress Tamil Nadu’s voice at the national level,” Stalin added.

The Chief Minister said the number of Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu would come down to 31 from 39 if the Delimitation was carried out on population basis if the total number of seats are capped at the current 543. The “penalized” feeling among Southern states isn’t related to Delimitation alone but extends to the devolution of Central taxes, which has been on the downslide in successive Finance Commissions.

With just 130 seats across the five states and Puducherry, the South already feels it isn’t able to play a role in the government formation even if it votes en bloc, and these states say it is natural for them to feel threatened over any reduction from the current representation that is already considered low.