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Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Thursday urged the Southern Zonal Council to adopt a resolution calling upon the Union government to honour the 1971 census as the basis for delimitation, retain the Lok Sabha's existing strength of 543 seats for the next 25 years, and accommodate women's reservation within these existing seats.
Addressing the 31st meeting of the Southern Zonal Council here, Shivakumar said the South's success in controlling its population must not become a reason for reducing its political voice. "We welcome the assurance that no southern state will lose seats. But representation is not only about numbers. It is about weight, and about voice," he said. Shivakumar said the southern states had responded to the country's call for population stabilisation with discipline and success, and should not be penalised for that achievement during the delimitation exercise. "That success must never become the reason to make our voice smaller. Our economic weight must be matched with political voice," he said. The Chief Minister specifically called for the 1971 population basis to be respected and for the overall strength of the Lok Sabha to remain unchanged. "I am confident that all the Chief Ministers here will support me in what I say. Let the 1971 basis be honoured, and let the strength of our voice be protected," he said. Shivakumar also linked the delimitation issue with women's reservation, arguing that the implementation of the reservation should not be delayed on account of a fresh delimitation exercise. "Women have waited long enough for their rightful representation. Their reservation should not have to wait for a population count," he said. He therefore urged the Council to pass a resolution seeking to freeze the number of Lok Sabha seats at the existing 543 for the next 25 years and provide women's reservation within those 543 seats. "I therefore urge this Council to move a resolution to freeze the number of seats in Lok Sabha to the current number and provide women's reservation within that number. I call upon my fellow Chief Ministers to stand together behind our shared stand," he said. CM Shivakumar's intervention comes amid concerns among southern states that a delimitation exercise based on population could alter the balance of parliamentary representation between states that have successfully implemented population-control measures and those with larger populations. He said protecting the South's political voice was integral to ensuring fairness within India's federal structure. "Fairness in our voice is one half of the story. Fairness in our resources is the other," CM Shivakumar said. (ANI)
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