Actor and Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) chief Kamal Haasan along with leaders from various political parties attended an all-party meeting in Chennai to discuss the contentious issue of Lok Sabha seat delimitation. The meeting, chaired by CM Stalin, focused on safeguarding Tamil Nadu’s political representation and ensuring that the delimitation process does not disadvantage southern states.
Kamal Haasan, speaking to ANI after the meeting, emphasised that the current number of 543 Lok Sabha seats is sufficient to represent the nation. He argued against increasing the number of parliamentary seats, stating, “Even when India’s population was 145 crore, these 453 members led the country to this position today… they are sufficient.” He further suggested that if the number of representatives must be increased, the focus should be on expanding state legislative assembly seats, as state governments are responsible for executing central decisions.
Commenting on the three language formula as part of National Education Policy, Kamal Hassan said that the centre wants to create Hindia and alleged that any decision made by the Centre would likely disadvantage non-Hindi-speaking states, reported India Today.
Kamal Haasan accused the Centre of leveraging financial aid to push the Hindi language under the guise of a “three-language policy,” exerting pressure on state governments to conform. Aligning with Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, Haasan opposed the delimitation of Lok Sabha seats, arguing that if representation needed to be increased, it should happen at the state level since states are responsible for implementing central policies, as per a report on Times of India.
Stalin Proposes Joint Action Committee
At the all-party meeting, Chief Minister Stalin proposed forming a Joint Action Committee (JAC) comprising MPs and political representatives from southern states to counteract potential losses in representation. He reiterated the demand that the 1971 Census be used as the basis for delimitation, advocating for a constitutional amendment to ensure fairness for the next 30 years.
Stalin cautioned that Tamil Nadu, which currently holds 39 Lok Sabha seats, risks losing representation if the exercise is based on the latest population data. He argued that states that successfully controlled population growth through welfare measures should not be penalized by a system that rewards population expansion.
“The delimitation sword is hanging over the head of south India and Tamil Nadu will be severely affected,” Stalin alleged, as per PTI.
