NEW DELHI: Opposition parties Tuesday said they will vote against the constitutional amendment on delimitation that proposes to raise Lok Sabha strength from 543 to 850, calling it a “dangerous” move that could reduce the share of southern, north-western, north-eastern and smaller states. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi termed it an “anti-national act”. The parties also questioned govt’s intent behind the proposed delimitation commission, citing what they called “politically motivated” and “communal” gerrymandering in Assam and J&K, and dubbed the panel a weapon in the hands of governing BJP.The opposition demanded that Modi govt immediately implement 33% women’s reservation in legislatures based on current LS strength of 543 seats, by following Article 334(a), passed unanimously in 2023. The provision says the quota will be operationalized after delimitation based on 2027 Census. Opposition netas argued that Census data would be available by then and delimitation within the existing 543 seats could be completed before the 2029 general elections, criticizing govt’s proposal to rely on the 2011 Census.The INDIA bloc, along with AAP, met at Congress chief Kharge’s residence Wednesday to finalize a joint stand on the proposed bills, including delimitation and women’s reservation. Participants included SP, DMK, TMC, Shiv Sena, NCP, National Conference, RSP, CPI-ML, IUML, CPM and CPI, while Hemant Soren and Uddhav joined remotely.Flanked by netas, including TR Baalu, Omar Abdullah, NK Premachandran, Supriya Sule, Ramashankar Rajbhar, Sagarika Ghose, Tejashwi Yadav, Sanjay Raut, Sanjay Singh, Annie Raja, Naseer Hussain and Jairam Ramesh, Kharge said, “We are for women’s reservation, but delimitation is a politically motivated move to trap and suppress opposition parties.” Congress MP KC Venugopal said, “We will certainly vote against delimitation.“Sources said Rahul Gandhi stressed that all MPs must be present during voting. TMC’s Ghose reportedly said some members may be busy campaigning in WB, but several netas, including Rahul, argued that abstention would effectively aid BJP. DMK’s Baalu is learned to have said his party was scaling back campaigning in TN to ensure attendance. Thackeray said he would speak to Mamata Banerjee to ensure full participation, while parties like Congress, DMK, SP, Shiv Sena and NCP are expected to be present in strength.DMK chief MK Stalin said, “Across Tamil Nadu, black flags will rise from homes and public spaces on April 16 against delimitation. Every south Indian south of Vindhyas is seething with anger. BJP is playing with fire.”Netas cautioned that BJP may attempt to portray opposition as anti-women quota, and said they would clarify their support for reservation. Senior lawyer and MP Kapil Sibal warned that delimitation could give BJP a future two-thirds majority, enab-ling constitutional changes.
