done: arun
Hyderabad: An all-party meeting convened by the Congress govt on Monday addressed concerns over the Centre’s proposed delimitation exercise. The meeting reached a unanimous consensus that South Indian states should have a voice in determining the formula for delimitation. Furthermore, it was agreed that the contentious issue should be postponed until a scientific solution can be found.
Deputy chief minister Bhatti Vikramarka, who chaired the meeting, emphasised the importance of southern states in the formation of the govt, stating: “The role of southern states, especially Telangana, in the formation of the govt should be crucial.” He expressed concerns that if delimitation were based on both population and pro-rata formulas, South Indian states could lose representation in the Lok Sabha. He called for the postponement of the delimitation exercise until a more scientific approach is found to address the issue.
Key figures from various political parties participated in the meeting, including Congress senior leaders, AIMIM’s Akbaruddin Owaisi, CPI’s Kunamneni Sambasiva Rao, CPM state secretary John Wesley, as well as leaders from other left-wing parties and the Republican Party of India. Akbaruddin and other participants echoed concerns that southern states, particularly Telangana, could lose out on constituencies during the redistribution process.
“The southern states, mainly Telangana, will lose out with the redistribution of constituencies in delimitation,” Vikramarka asserted. He further stressed the need for ongoing discussions among political parties, associations, and intellectuals in the state to find a scientific solution. “A national policy on delimitation should do justice to all states, particularly those in the south, which successfully implemented the govt of India’s family planning promotion policy,” he added.
He also pointed out that although BRS leaders were invited to attend, they did not participate, citing various reasons. Additionally, BJP state president G Kishan Reddy could not attend due to prior commitments in Parliament.
Akbaruddin proposed that the Telangana assembly should pass a unanimous resolution demanding justice for South Indian states in the delimitation process. He suggested that the resolution be sent to the Centre for consideration. Congress veteran K Jana Reddy also recommended that the status quo be maintained for the time being to avoid unrest in the country.
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The all-party meeting was deemed a preliminary discussion, with plans for further deliberations in the coming days. Party leaders indicated their readiness to implement any decisions made by the all-party committee to oppose delimitation based on population and pro-rata formulas.
