Tamil Nadu CM Vijay to move resolution against delimitation in Assembly
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay is set to move a resolution in the state Assembly seeking permanent protection of the existing 543 Lok
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay is set to move a resolution in the state Assembly seeking permanent protection of the existing 543 Lok Sabha seats and the current distribution of seats among states, while also urging the Centre to implement 33 per cent reservation for women from the 2029 general election. The exact date or time when the resolution is likely to be tabled has not been known yet. However, the move comes after Vijay chaired a meeting of MPs on Saturday at Kalaivanar Arangam to discuss the proposed delimitation exercise. Read Full Story The meeting was boycotted by the DMK and AIADMK, which described the exercise as unnecessary and politically motivated. The AIADMK's ally PMK also stayed away. A total of 21 MPs attended the meeting, including 11 from the Congress, two each from the CPI, CPI(M) and VCK, and one each from the MDMK and IUML. Congress leader P Chidambaram, VCK chief Thol Thirumavalavan and MDMK's Durai Vaiko were among those present. TAMIL NADU SEEKS PERMANENTLY FIXED 543 LOK SABHA SEATS The resolution to be moved by Vijay says that the number of Lok Sabha and state Assembly members has been determined on the basis of the 1971 Census population figures for the past 50 years, with elections conducted accordingly.
It refers to a Constitution Amendment Bill introduced in April 2026 that sought to remove the 50-year-old restriction on delimitation and conduct the exercise based on the 2011 Census. The Bill also proposed increasing the strength of the Lok Sabha from 550 to 850 members. According to the resolution, however, the legislation failed to pass in Parliament. The Tamil Nadu government argues that if delimitation is carried out using any Census conducted after 1971, the parliamentary representation of southern states, including Tamil Nadu, could be permanently affected. The resolution says states that have successfully controlled their population, achieved economic growth and implemented healthcare and welfare programmes should not be adversely affected by the exercise. It therefore seeks three key changes from the Union government. First, the total strength of the Lok Sabha should be permanently fixed at 543 members. Second, the existing number of Lok Sabha seats allocated to each state should remain unchanged, preserving the current inter-state distribution. Third, the existing Lok Sabha-Rajya Sabha ratio of 2.2:1 should also be maintained permanently. VIJAY SEEKS 33% WOMEN'S RESERVATION FROM 2029 Alongside the demand to protect the existing seat distribution, the resolution calls for one-third reservation for women to be implemented in the 2029 Lok Sabha election without delay.
The BriefWire