DMK MPs challenge Amit Shah on delimitation, demands legal guarantee on TN’s representation

CHENNAI: Taking potshots at Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who is holding key BJP meetings in Madurai on Sunday, senior DMK MPs have mounted pressure on the BJP-led Centre, demanding categorical assurances on the preservation of Tamil Nadu's representation in the Lok Sabha post-delimitation.

Leading the charge, Chennai Central MP Dayanidhi Maran posed a pointed question to Shah: "Is the Home Minister prepared to give a legal guarantee that Tamil Nadu's representation in the Lok Sabha will remain at 7.18 per cent?"

Citing the 84th Constitutional Amendment, which mandates that constituency delimitation be based on the first census conducted after 2026, the former union minister accused the BJP-led Union government of intentionally delaying the decennial census, now scheduled for 2027.

"The Chief Minister has been opposing this BJP conspiracy from the outset," Maran said, adding that Stalin had mobilised the support of other state leaders likely to be affected.

"Those who once claimed that CM Stalin was creating unnecessary panic are now getting exposed. The danger is real and imminent. What will Amit Shah say now?" he asked.

Echoing similar concerns, Chennai South MP Thamizhachi Thangapandian accused the Centre of trying to dilute the political voice of progressive states, such as Tamil Nadu.

"The BJP is conspiring to reward states that failed to control population growth by increasing their parliamentary representation. The delayed census is a calculated ploy to shift political power," she alleged.

The DMK MP demanded clarity from Shah and Prime Minister Narendra Modi: "If the redrawing of constituencies is based on the 2027 census, will Tamil Nadu's share in the Lok Sabha decrease or not? If not, where is the proposed amendment to defer the population-based redelineation beyond 2026?"

Both MPs insisted that vague assurances would not suffice—only a legal safeguard would.