Amid the ongoing row over the proposed delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies, the Congress on Saturday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should take the lead and consult with all the stakeholders in this regard.
Talking about the proposed delimitation, Congress General Secretary in-charge of Communications Jairam Ramesh said that delimitation cannot be done without carrying out a fresh census.
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Referring to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, he said, “Atal Bihari Vajpayee amended the Constitution to say that the delimitation will be postponed till we complete the first census after 2026, which means 2031. That was Vajpayee’s constitutional amendment in 2002. So, delimitation was kept frozen at 1971 population levels.”
“When is the Census coming ? We raised this question yesterday, four years have passed. You need delimitation for the women’s reservation and distribution of Lok Sabha seats across states,” he said.
The Congress MP categorically stated that states with successes in family planning cannot be penalised.
“If we take the 2025 estimated population, many states will lose their representations and some states will gain. Some states that have been successful in family planning, reducing fertility rate, are going to be penalised. That is unacceptable,” he told a news agency.
Asserting that there are solutions to resolve the issue, Ramesh said, “The Prime Ministers must take lead. We must have discussions with the Chief Ministers, political parties, civil society organisations. But, the fundamental principle is that states which had succeeded in family planning should not be penalised.”
