Fair Delimitation: What Happened at the First Consultation Meeting of the Joint Action Committee?

The first consultation meeting of the Joint Action Committee on Fair Delimitation was held in Chennai on March 22. Accepting the invitation of the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Thiru M.K. Stalin, representatives from more than 20 political parties, including the Chief Ministers of Kerala, Karnataka, Telangana, and Punjab, participated in the meeting.

Delimitation of Constituencies

The Union BJP government has planned to carry out constituency delimitation across the country in 2026. Since this exercise will be based on the population of each state, there is a risk that the number of Lok Sabha seats for states like Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh—which have successfully controlled population growth—may decrease.

Joint Action Committee

The Hon’ble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, M.K. Stalin, has been opposing this plan of the Union BJP government from the very beginning. On the 5th of this month, he convened an all-party meeting at the Chennai Secretariat, attended by representatives of 58 political parties. During the meeting, it was resolved to unite the states that would be affected by the delimitation and to form a Joint Action Committee.

Also Read : Tamil Nadu’s Trailblazing Reforms in Education Under Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi

Invitation to the Consultation Meeting

Accordingly, the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, M.K. Stalin, wrote letters to the Chief Ministers and party leaders of Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha, West Bengal, and Punjab, explaining the potential impact of delimitation.

In the letter, he invited them to participate in the consultation meeting of the Joint Action Committee on March 22 in Chennai, which was convened to discuss the next steps regarding the parliamentary constituency delimitation.

First Consultation Meeting of the Joint Action Committee

Accordingly, the first meeting of the Joint Action Committee against delimitation was held under the leadership of the Hon’ble Chief Minister M.K. Stalin at a private hotel in Chennai. More than 20 key political leaders participated, including: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar Former Odisha Minister and Biju Janata Dal party leader Sanjay Kumar Das Burma BRS Party leader K.T. Rama Rao Shiromani Akali Dal working president Balwinder Singh Udhay Srinivas MP from Pawan Kalyan’s Jana Sena Party PMA Salam, Kerala State General Secretary of the Indian Union Muslim League Kerala Congress leader Jose K. Mani The meeting brought together representatives from over 20 major political parties to discuss and coordinate opposition to the proposed delimitation.

Chief Minister M.K.Stalin's Speech

During the meeting, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin stated that if a population-based parliamentary delimitation (Fair Delimitation) is implemented, it would lead to reduced parliamentary representation for the state, force us to fight for even basic funding, impose anti-people laws upon us, erode our culture and identity, and marginalize working-class citizens and laborers. Students and youth could lose their rights in education and employment, women’s empowerment could suffer setbacks, social justice would be compromised, and reservation benefits would be undermined. Scheduled and tribal communities would be disproportionately affected, and we could be turned into politically powerless citizens in our own state, with decisions being made by those who know nothing about us.

Also, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin also emphasized that this meeting is not against delimitation itself, but calls for the proper and fair implementation of constituency delimitation, and urged everyone to acknowledge this.  

Resolution Passed

Following discussions, the Chief Ministers and party leaders from the participating states shared their views on delimitation. Ultimately, it was unanimously resolved that the delimitation exercise should be deferred for the next 25 years, and that Prime Minister Modi should announce this decision in Parliament. The resolution also emphasized that any future delimitation must be conducted in a transparent manner.

To know about JAC meeting highlights: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/delimitation-joint-action-committee-meeting-chennai-tamil-nadu-stalin-march-22-2025/article69360670.ece