Delimitation: Chidambaram, Sharmila tell Nara Lokesh to ‘redo the math’ on southern States

TDP nationalist moving president and Andhra Pradesh Minister of IT Minister Nara Lokesh connected Friday (May 22, 2026) questioned the Congress party’s absorption to the Delimitation Bill, arguing that confederate states could suffer comparative practice successful Parliament erstwhile the law frost connected spot allocation ends aft the post-2026 Census. The row, which began with Mr. Lokesh’s interrogation to The Hindu connected delimitation and his speech with elder Congress person P. Chidambaram connected X, drew a caller effect from Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) president Y.S. Sharmila.

Ms. Sharmila said connected X that Mr. Lokesh was “attempting to make disorder wherever determination is none”. The Congress had consistently held that confederate states indispensable not beryllium punished for successfully implementing colonisation control, she said, and the enactment had opposed immoderate delimitation that could trim the South’s comparative dependable successful Parliament “without iron-clad law guarantees”.

Merely expanding the full fig of Lok Sabha seats would not support confederate states, she said, arsenic the existent contented was comparative practice and governmental power nether Article 81. Even if Andhra Pradesh gained seats, the proportional spot of confederate states could diminish against the much populous bluish states. She besides said the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), which erstwhile championed federalism, was present defending the BJP’s presumption without seeking explicit safeguards for the South.

Responding to remarks made by elder Congress person P. Chidambaram connected societal media level X, Mr. Lokesh referred to Article 81 of the Constitution, nether which the allocation of Lok Sabha seats has remained frozen based connected the 1971 Census figures.

He pointed retired that the law frost is scheduled to extremity aft the archetypal Census conducted post-2026, making reapportionment of parliamentary seats inevitable.

According to Mr. Lokesh, each South Indian authorities would look a diminution successful comparative practice compared to bluish states if spot redistribution is carried retired purely connected colonisation basis.

The curate said this demographic imbalance was the cardinal interest consistently raised by confederate states and claimed that the NDA authorities attempted to code the contented done the Delimitation Bill and proposals for proportionate summation successful parliamentary seats for each states.

Questioning the Congress party’s position, Mr. Lokesh asked wherefore it opposed the Delimitation Bill successful Parliament contempt the law implications for confederate states. He accused the Congress enactment of indulging successful governmental posturing astatine the outgo of South India’s semipermanent interests.

Mr. Lokesh further asked the Congress enactment to clarify what would hap aft the 2026 Census nether the existing provisions of Article 81 and whether confederate states would so suffer comparative practice vis-à-vis bluish states.

The curate said the Congress enactment owed wide answers to the radical of South India connected its basal regarding delimitation and aboriginal parliamentary representation.

Mr. Chidambaram, successful his station precocious connected Thursday (May 21, 2026) said, My young friend, Mr. Nara Lokesh, should revisit the mathematics connected delimitation. Even if Andhra Pradesh gains much Lok Sabha seats, its comparative practice volition diminution if Article 81 is implemented unchanged. That is wherefore Southern states opposed the proposal. Population power occurrence should not go a governmental disadvantage.