Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Apr 3: The Congress has opposed the Centre’s reported proposal to increase seats in legislatures by 50 per cent alongside the implementation of women’s reservation, warning that it could disturb the balance of representation among states.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has called a meeting of senior MPs on April 9 to firm up the party’s strategy, followed by consultations with Opposition parties before Parliament reconvenes on April 16.

Party leader Jairam Ramesh said there has been no official communication on delimitation of Lok Sabha and Assembly seats. He added that Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju had only referred to early implementation of the 33 per cent women’s quota.

Ramesh alleged that reconvening the Budget Session for a brief period to pass bills related to women’s reservation and delimitation during ongoing Assembly elections in states like West Bengal and Tamil Nadu was aimed at gaining political mileage and violated the Model Code of Conduct.

Raising concerns over the proposed 50 per cent increase in seats, he said a “proportionate increase” would still lead to widening gaps between states. He pointed out that while Uttar Pradesh’s Lok Sabha seats could rise from 80 to 120, Kerala’s would increase only from 20 to 30, thereby increasing the gap from 60 to 90 seats.

He warned that such changes could disadvantage states in the south, north-west, and north-east, including Kerala, Assam, Haryana, and Punjab.

“Delimitation is a serious issue. There should be no disturbance in the present relative strength of states. No state should suffer, and there should be consensus,” Ramesh said.

On the women’s reservation issue, he recalled that Kharge had earlier demanded implementation of the quota from the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. He accused the government of delaying action after passing the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam and now attempting to take “double credit” during election season.

The Congress said the Opposition had sought an all-party meeting after the completion of Assembly polls on April 29, but the government moved ahead with its plans unilaterally.