Telangana chief minister A Revanth Reddy on Tuesday expressed strong reservations about the latest proposal by the Centre to increase Lok Sabha and state assembly seats by 50% through delimitation, alleging that the move was part of a “hidden conspiracy” that could politically discriminate against south India. T’gana CM opposes Centre’s move to scale LS, assembly seats
Speaking at an event in New Delhi, Revanth Reddy said the proposed exercise would disproportionately benefit northern states and significantly weaken the political relevance of southern states in national politics.
Terming the proposal “anti-South India,” the chief minister warned that the move could alter the balance of political power in favour of a few large northern states, enabling them to determine who forms the government at the Centre without requiring support from the South.
He pointed out that there was already a substantial gap in parliamentary representation between northern and southern states and argued that any increase in seats should preserve a fair regional balance rather than deepen the divide.
According to him, southern states currently account for 130 of the 543 Lok Sabha seats, while non-southern states hold 413 seats. If the number of seats is increased by 50%, he said, the south would have 195 seats in an expanded House of 815, while the remaining states would command 620 seats.
“Such an outcome would make southern states increasingly irrelevant in national decision-making,” he said.
He illustrated the disparity by noting that while the combined Lok Sabha seats of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry could increase from 40 to around 60, Uttar Pradesh alone could go up from 80 to nearly 120 seats. “This will further widen the existing gap in representation and further tilt political influence towards the Hindi-speaking belt,” he said.
Revanth Reddy alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was pursuing a strategy aimed at consolidating power at the Centre without depending on southern states. “If the present trend continues, states such as Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar together could secure enough seats to decide the fate of governments in New Delhi, effectively excluding the South from meaningful participation in national politics,” he said.
Calling it a “final blow” to southern states, Revanth Reddy said the delimitation proposal would intensify the north-south divide and undermine the federal spirit of the country. He argued that India must function as a united nation with equitable political representation for all regions, rather than allowing demographic advantage alone to determine political dominance.
He further said that even if delimitation is carried out on the basis of population, southern states would be unfairly penalised for successfully implementing family planning and population control measures over the years, largely in line with policies encouraged by the Centre.
“The south followed the national agenda on population stabilisation, and now it is being punished for that success,” he said.
Revanth Reddy also accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of following what he described as a “3D policy” (Delimitation, Discrimination and Devolution), which he claimed was detrimental to the interests of southern states.
The chief minister stressed that any decision on increasing parliamentary seats must not be taken unilaterally and should involve consultation with all political parties and states. “The Centre should evolve a formula that ensures the existing balance between northern and southern states is maintained, even if the total number of seats is increased,” he added.
Calling for a united response, Revanth Reddy urged southern states and like-minded political leaders to come together against what he described as an unjust and discriminatory approach to delimitation. He said he was prepared to join hands with leaders across party lines to oppose the move and would also take the issue to the people during election campaigns.
BJP Telangana president N Ramchander Rao on Wednesday strongly condemned the remarks of the chief minister that the delimitation of constituencies would create differences between south and north.
He rejected the argument of Revanth Reddy that delimitation of constituencies would politically disadvantage southern states. “The Congress had divided the country and now in Telangana, Revanth Reddy is trying to create differences between south and north,” he said.
Rao alleged that Congress party was opposing delimitation as it is not in favour of 33% for women in coming elections. However, he said, the BJP would give tickets to women and youth in coming elections.