Brinda Karat slams delimitation bill, calls it 'gerrymandering'

CPI(M)'s Brinda Karat slammed the delimitation bill linked to women's reservation, calling it a move to "gerrymander constituencies" that will harm southern states' representation. She urged delinking the contentious process from the bill.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Brinda Karat on Wednesday criticised the delimitation bill pushed with an amendment to Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, to provide 33 per cent reservation for women legislators in Lok Sabha and state assemblies.

Taking shots at the Centre, Brinda Karat said the delimitation bill is "a platform to gerrymander constituencies" for the government's interests, emphasising the disadvantages its possess on the representation of the southern states. Karat urged the Centre to delink the delimitation process, which aims to increase Lok Sabha seats to 850 from 543, from the women's reservation bill.

'Delink from Politically Contentious Issues'

"We cannot support the proposals which are being brought by the government in the name of women's reservation to parliament tomorrow. They are moving two bills... They are linking women's reservations with politically contentious issues like delimitation and the census process... The delimitation bill, which is being brought, is nothing but a platform to gerrymander constituencies to suit the interests; everything is in the hands of the central government... The delimitation commission and the census should be completely separated from women's reservation," Brinda Karat said.

Concerns for Southern States

Highlighting the concern of southern states, Karat said, "Tamil Nadu Chief Minister (MK Stalin) has raised many important issues. Sonia Gandhi has also raised many issues... Delink women's reservations from the census and the delimitation process. What M K Stalin has said about the South and discrimination against the South are issues which need discussion."

Proposed Changes and Opposition Backlash

The Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, which provides for 33 per cent reservation for women legislators, is linked to the delimitation process in the Lok Sabha. The government is planning to implement the women's reservation ahead of the 2029 General Elections by bringing in an amendment to the 2023 Act and a constitutional amendment to delink the delimitation process from the 2027 census.

According to sources, the government has proposed to increase the number of seats in the House to 850, with 815 seats proposed for the States and the remaining 35 for the Union Territories. The Lok Sabha has 543 seats at present.

While the seats in the Lok Sabha will witness a 50 per cent increase, the opposition parties have expressed concern as this increase will not be on a pro-rata basis for each state. The INDIA bloc parties claimed that the proposed delimitation shrinks the representation of southern states in the Lok Sabha. The delimitation exercise, under Article 82 of the Constitution, is linked to the population of a constituency. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)