Chennai, Aug 13:
AIADMK legislative party leader Edappadi K Palaniswami on Wednesday accused the TVK-led Tamil Nadu government of bringing a resolution on delimitation for political reasons and to create a sensation, even though there was no indication that a Delimitation Bill was likely to be introduced in Parliament.
Participating in the Assembly debate, Palaniswami said there was no immediate need to create apprehension over the issue when the Union government had not indicated that it was preparing to introduce a Delimitation Bill in Parliament.
He maintained that Tamil Nadu’s existing representation in Parliament should be protected and that the number of Lok Sabha constituencies allotted to the State should not be reduced. The State’s share should continue at the present proportion of 7.18 per cent, he said.
Palaniswami also urged the ruling benches to place their trust in the assurance given by Union Home Minister Amit Shah that Tamil Nadu’s representation would be safeguarded during the delimitation exercise.
According to Palaniswami, the AIADMK had supported only one aspect of the resolution moved by the government — the provision for 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha. He made it clear that the party’s support for the women’s reservation component should not be construed as an endorsement of the other portions of the resolution.
Recalling Amit Shah’s earlier assurance on delimitation, Palaniswami said Tamil Nadu’s proportionate representation in Parliament would be protected. He added that the same assurance had also found a place in the AIADMK’s election manifesto.
The remarks triggered a sharp response from Health and Family Welfare Minister KG Arunraj, who questioned the reliability of political assurances made by leaders at the Centre.
Arunraj referred to former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s assurance that Hindi would not be imposed on non-Hindi-speaking States. He said the experience of the country showed that such assurances could not always be relied upon.
“In this situation, when we could not fulfil Nehru’s promise, we do not know how Amit Shah’s promise can be implemented,” Arunraj said.
The minister’s remarks drew an immediate response from Palaniswami.
The AIADMK leader said Amit Shah was the Union Home Minister and therefore his assurance on the delimitation issue should be trusted.
Palaniswami’s intervention came amid a continuing political debate in Tamil Nadu over the possible impact of the next delimitation exercise on the State’s representation in Parliament.
The issue has emerged as a politically sensitive one in Tamil Nadu, with parties expressing concern that States which have successfully implemented population-control measures could potentially lose parliamentary representation if seats are redistributed primarily on the basis of population.
The TVK government’s resolution has sought to put the State’s concerns on record, while the AIADMK has maintained that there is no need for political alarm in the absence of a concrete proposal before Parliament.
The exchange between Palaniswami and Arunraj, meanwhile, highlighted the contrasting positions of the Opposition and the ruling benches on whether assurances from the Centre should be accepted or whether Tamil Nadu should continue to press for statutory safeguards on its parliamentary representation.