Hyderabad:
Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy has raised serious concerns over the plan to increase the Lok Sabha in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling it a move that will “affect the future of our democracy and country.”
The Women’s Reservation Bill, delimitation, and the increase in seats are separate and not connected, he said in the letter.
He also demanded that the Women’s Reservation Bill be implemented immediately with the current 543 seats. “The political empowerment of women is a moral imperative,” the letter read.
Reddy strongly objected to the proposal to increase Lok Sabha seats from 543 to 850 based on population. “The real contentious issue is increasing seats to 850 on a pro rata basis,” he said.
Read: Southern States To Benefit Despite Smaller Population: Sources On Quota Bill
On potential impact, he said, “This could shift political power and create imbalance, especially against southern states.” “States like Telangana and others in the South will be penalised politically despite better population control and economic performance,” he added.
Reddy also raised concerns over fairness, saying, “Progress should not be punished, and population growth should not be rewarded.” Rather, the chief minister suggested a middle path: “A hybrid model can balance population and economic contribution to ensure fairness.”
“An all-party meeting must be held to build consensus,” he stressed.
However, high-ranking sources in the central government have asserted that the implementation of women’s reservation will result in benefits, rather than disadvantages, for the South Indian states.
Earlier in the day, Reddy had called for a “protracted struggle” by the southern states to secure fair representation. He has also written to the chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka to unitedly resist the centre’s move.
Speaking at an event marking the 135th birth anniversary of BR Ambedkar, he argued that a uniform 50% increase in seats would weaken the voice of states that performed better on development and family planning indicators.
He also alleged that linking the reservation bill with delimitation was a “political strategy”. “The Centre is rushing by combining delimitation and women’s reservation. These issues must be discussed separately with clear procedures,” he said.
Reddy also accused the Centre of delaying the implementation of women’s reservation while projecting political blame on the Opposition. “If it had been implemented earlier, nearly 33% representation could already have been achieved,” he noted, crediting Congress for consistently supporting women’s political empowerment. He also claimed his party ensured early voting rights for women in India when many countries had not done so.
The state BJP had yesterday accused Reddy of displaying “loyalty beyond reason” to his party’s central leadership at the cost of national interest and progressive reforms and suggested that the Telangana Congress leaders should support reforms that promote inclusivity and empowerment, particularly for women, rather than politicising critical national issues.
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