"Delimitation being made into an issue": BJP's Praveen Khandelwal attacks opposition

New Delhi [India], March 23 (ANI): BJP MP Praveen Khandelwal on Sunday took a jibe at the leaders of the Opposition for their stance over delimitation and accused them of 'politicising' the issue only to safeguard their "political relevance".
Highlighting the support extended to all states by the Modi government, Khandelwal stressed that over the past decade, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has ensured equal development and assistance to every state in India, dismissing any claims of regional bias.
"Delimitation is not an issue, but some leaders from the southern states are trying to make an issue out of it because they are losing their identities from their politics. In the past 10 years, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has equally provided support to all the states of the country," Khandelwal told ANI.
Responding to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's statement on delimitation, Khandelwal said, "Pinarayi Vijayan is using delimitation as a weapon to come forward in politics, which is not right."
This comes after Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday launched a scathing attack on the BJP-led Central government over the issue of the delimitation stating that this sudden process without any consultation is not driven by any Constitutional principle but by "narrow political interests."
"Proposed delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies is hanging over our heads. Various reports indicate that the BJP-led Union Government is going ahead with the delimitation process without any consultation. This sudden move is not driven by any Constitutional principle or any democratic imperative. But by narrow political interests," CM Vijayan said during the meeting.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin had called a Joint Action Committee meeting to discuss the issue of delimitation on Saturday. Leaders across various states gathered in Chennai to express their concerns with the proposed exercise.
The Joint Action Committee on Saturday passed a resolution on the issue of delimitation, expressing concern over the "lack of transparency and clarity" from the Union government.
The JAC unanimously demanded greater transparency from the Union government regarding any delimitation exercise and called for the extension of the freeze on Parliamentary constituencies based on the 1971 Census Population for another 25 years.
The JAC led by Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin urged the central government to "not penalise" the states which have effectively implemented the population control program.
Moreover, JAC resolved that the political parties from different states represented in the meeting will bring appropriate Legislative Assembly resolutions on the delimitation issue.
"The Political Parties from different states represented in the meeting will initiate efforts to bring about appropriate Legislative Assembly resolutions in their respective States on the issue and communicate the same to Union Government. The JAC will also undertake necessary efforts to disseminate information on the history and context of past delimitation exercises and the consequences of the proposed delimitation among the citizens of their respective States, through a coordinated public opinion mobilization strategy," the resolution read.
Additionally, the JAC resolved that MPs will counter any attempts by the Union Government to undertake any delimitation exercise contrary to the principles mentioned above.
"The Core Committee of MPs shall submit a Joint Representation on the above lines to the Hon'ble Prime Minister of India during the ongoing Parliamentary session," it added.
The first meeting of JAC called by Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin was attended by various political leaders, including Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan, Odisha Congress President Bhakta Charan Das, and Biju Janata Dal leader Sanjay Kumar Das Burma, among others.
Stalin said that the next meeting on the delimitation of constituencies will be held in Hyderabad, Telangana. (ANI)