Chennai, April 15 (IANS). Tamilaga Vetri Kazhagam (TVK) leader Vijay on Wednesday expressed concern over the proposed constitutional amendment of the Central government.
Vijay warned that this could cause huge losses to the southern states, especially Tamil Nadu. The purpose of this amendment is to reorganize parliamentary representation.
Vijay referred to the proposed Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026 in a statement. The purpose of this bill is to increase the number of members in the Lok Sabha from the current 543 to 850. It is expected that this will be discussed in the special session of Parliament starting from Thursday.
While welcoming the long-pending law providing 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament, he warned that the amendment related to delimitation should not be given priority over the bill providing reservation for women.
He said that if this amendment is passed without proper safeguards, it may further increase the proportional difference in representation between the northern and southern states.
According to Vijay, such a change would reduce parliamentary representation of southern states that have effectively implemented population control measures, while increasing the influence of more populous northern states.
He argued that this could have far-reaching consequences for policy-making, legislative priorities, and the balance of federal power.
TVK leader Vijay warned that if the voice of southern states weakens, issues related to language, culture and states’ rights may receive less attention in Parliament.
He said that the concerns and aspirations of the people of states like Tamil Nadu may no longer be heard properly in Parliament. Vijay described the move as potentially discriminatory.
The TVK leader also alleged that the proposed changes could also impact the allocation of central funds. He said changes in the distribution of parliamentary seats could change the basis of distribution of financial resources among states, leading to a reduction in the allocation to states like Tamil Nadu.
He said that the Tamil Nadu government has earlier raised concerns about inadequate central funding and limited allocation for projects during the presentation of the Union Budget.
He warned that redistribution based on population after delimitation could lead to further reduction in financial assistance.
Vijay urged the Center to reconsider its approach, sought continuation of the existing arrangement and withdrew the proposed amendment. He said states that have followed national policies should not be ‘punished’ while others are ‘rewarded’.
–IANS
ASH/DKP