"Will be etched in history...": MK Stalin Hosts Meeting of CMs on Delimitation; "Delusional Drama" Says BJP

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin welcomed Chief Ministers and political leaders from various states to the first-ever meeting in Chennai on Saturday, which focuses on the issue of delimitation. He stated that the event would be “etched in history,” as it marks a united effort by states to protect India’s federal structure through a commitment to fair delimitation.

Taking to social media platform X, Stalin said, "Today will be etched in history as the day when states that have contributed to our nation’s development came together to safeguard its federal structure by ensuring #FairDelimitation. I warmly welcome all Chief Ministers and political leaders to this meeting, united in our commitment to #FairDelimitation.”

On the eve of the meeting, Stalin had emphasised that the event was not just a gathering, but the beginning of a movement aimed at shaping the future of the nation in favour of fair delimitation. “Delimitation of constituencies should not happen as per current population. We all should be firm in opposing it... With the decrease in the people's representatives in Parliament, our strength to express our views will decrease,” he stated.

Leaders including Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, Shiromani Akali Dal working president Balwinder Singh Bhunder, and PMA Salam, General Secretary of the Indian Union Muslim League in Kerala, reached to attend the meeting. The DMK invited representatives from seven states: Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha, West Bengal, and Punjab.

However, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was quick to criticise the meeting, with Tamil Nadu BJP President K. Annamalai describing it as a "delusional drama." The BJP also staged a black flag protest against Stalin, accusing him of neglecting crucial state issues, such as the Cauvery and Mullaiperiar water-sharing disputes with Karnataka and Kerala.

Annamalai lashed out at Stalin on social media, calling his actions a "delusional drama on delimitation," and challenged him to address remarks made by DMK Minister TM Anbarasan, who had made controversial comments about the population growth in northern states. "Tomorrow, while TN CM Thiru @mkstalin orchestrates his delusional drama on Delimitation, we hope he will play this speech of DMK Minister Thiru TM Anbarasan to his I.N.D.I. Alliance partners. It’s as if the DMK Ministers have made a collective decision to insult and abuse our brothers and sisters of northern India," Annamalai said.

The delimitation issue revolves around redrawing parliamentary constituency boundaries based on population figures. The ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu has opposed using the most recent census data, advocating instead for the 1971 census figures to be used as the basis for delimitation. On March 5, Chief Minister Stalin urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Parliament to ensure that Tamil Nadu's representation percentage of 7.18% in Parliament remains unchanged. The Joint Action Committee (JAC) is actively pushing this demand, stressing the importance of maintaining equal representation.​