Statement

We are discussing a Bill, and they are issuing a Gazette Notification. ... (Interruptions) माननीय अÅय± : किनमोझी जी, आप अपना भाषण शुł कìिजए । … (Óयवधान) 17.04.2026 58 11.13 hrs CONSTITUTION (ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-FIRST AMENDMENT) BILL, 2026 AND UNION TERRITORIES LAWS (AMENDMENT) BILL, 2026 AND DELIMITATION BILL, 2026----Contd. SHRIMATI KANIMOZHI KARUNANIDHI (THOOTHUKKUDI): I stand before this House today not just as a Member of Parliament or as a representative of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, but as a voice of the eight crore people of Tamil Nadu who have been told, in the midst of State elections, that their votes will count for less and their voice in this Parliament will be diminished. Furthermore, it is truly shocking that, since yesterday, we have been discussing a Bill here, and the Government has taken its own time to notify it. When Members were called for discussion on this Bill yesterday, what was the need and necessity to notify it on the same day? What does this mean? What respect does this reflect for this House? ... (Interruptions) The Government has introduced three Bills in this Special Session, called in haste and timed in a manner that disrupts the ongoing elections in many States, including mine. I rise to oppose these Bills on behalf of my party and my State. Let me begin by stating that these three Bills, disguised as if they are in support of the reservation of women, constitute the single greatest assault on the Indian federal structure.  Further discussion on the motions for consideration of the Bills moved by Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal and Shri Amit Shah on 16th April 2026. 17.04.2026 59 This Government often relies on the public not knowing the history. At the heart of this issue lies the history of delimitation, a history of a promise made by Parliament to the people of the Southern States – Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. These five States have resisted the onslaught of the Bharatiya Janata Party and have stood out as role models for inclusive development. The delimitation process began in 1952, soon after the Republic was founded. It was a constitutional solution to a demographic problem - how to balance population growth with fair representation. All of us abided by the constitutional provisions in Articles 82 and 170. By 1973, when the Third Delimitation Commission had completed its work, there was also a push for population control. This National Population Policy was introduced across the country to contain the rapidly growing population. The first freeze on delimitation took place in 1976. This was fixed for a period of 25 years, based on the 1971 Census. Let us not forget that it was the Congress Government, Madam Indira Gandhi's Government that recognised this issue and brought the Bill. In the 1976, by 42nd Amendment, Parliament froze the total number of Lok Sabha seats at 543. This freeze was not a technical detail. It was a constitutional compact, a promise made to every family in India and South India that compliance with objectives of the national policy would not cost them their political voice. Over time, Southern India - Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh - had begun to invest in schools, hospitals, women's health. We listened to the Union Government's 17.04.2026 60 repeated call to control our population. We complied. Our fertility rates fell. Our families became smaller. In 2001, understanding that some States, especially Southern States and other States like Punjab, had done a better job at these indicators and some other States had to catch up, there was a Union Government which listened to the voices of the people from the South. Yes, I have to give you credit when you deserve it. We are unlike you, always finding fault with us. When there is something to appreciate you, we always appreciate. So, under the Vajpayee Government, the Parliament extended that freeze through the 84th Amendment until after the first Census following 2026, 24 more years of protection because then Parliament, in its collective wisdom, understood that this injustice had to be addressed. Why do we have to increase the seats now to 850? On what basis? The Statement of Objective states that there is a change in demographic profile. Yet, you are using a 15-year-old 2011 Census data to conduct delimitation. You are contradicting yourselves. Most of the MPs, after making the seats 850, might not even get a chance to speak in this Parliament for five years. Sir, I want to tell this House about a family in Tamil Nadu, a mother and a father, first generation literates. They had only two children, not five, not six, because they believed in family planning, because the Government told them that was the right thing for the country, because they wanted their children to have a better life. That is the story of Tamil Nadu and the South Indian States. Today, Tamil Nadu's total fertility rate is 1.6, lower than France, lower than 17.04.2026 61 Australia, lower than the United States, your friends. We have completed what the demographers call a demographic transition. Our population is stable. Our women are educated. By every measure of human development, Tamil Nadu is a success story that the country has to be proud of. But what does this Government say to that family in Tamil Nadu? It says, ‘sorry, you made a wrong choice. You made a mistake by listening to us. You made a mistake by listening to this, because you cared about this country’. Because you put the country first, you have to suffer. We are going to reduce your representation. Uttar Pradesh's population has grown by 120 per cent since 1971. Tamil Nadu's only by 15 per cent. And contrary to what the Home Minister said yesterday, Clause 4 of the Delimitation Bill clearly states that the allocations of seats will be on the basis of the latest Census figures. The Home Minister says one thing, the Bill says another thing. Now, the latest available Census is 2011 but again, according to the 2011 formula, UP gains 13 seats. Tamil Nadu loses 11 seats. But the Home Minister yesterday told us that by increasing 50 per cent seats, Tamil Nadu will gain 20 seats. Tamil Nadu has 39 seats, and will have 59 seats. Sir, our ideological leader Periyar taught us, justice is not giving every person the same thing. Justice is giving every person what they need and what they deserve. But unfortunately, your Government thinks what it needs and what it deserves is what the whole nation deserves and what the whole nation needs. Other than this, let me state two critical legal issues present in the Bill. 17.04.2026 62 The Constitution Bill says that the delimitation will be based on such census as Parliament may by law determine. This is vague and leaves everything open. It literally means that whichever party has a majority in Parliament gets to decide which census is used to draw the electoral map of this country. Today, you might choose 2011, tomorrow you can choose 2031 and day after it can be 1991. This shows a non-application of mind or a mind determined to push its own agenda on this country. Second, the Delimitation Commission will be chaired by a retired Supreme Court judge appointed entirely by the Union Government with no consultation with the Chief Justice of India, no consultation with any State Government and no parliamentary confirmation. As per Clause 5 of the Delimitation Bill, the States get so-called associate members, 5 MPs and 5 MLAs, who are not allowed to vote, who are not allowed to sign the Commission’s decisions, not allowed to do anything except sit and watch from the wings. The Home Minister said, “50 per cent increase across the States.” I want to know what happens when the Delimitation Commission does not agree to the Home Minister’s suggestion. Are you going to bulldoze the Delimitation Commission also like what you are usually doing? Will the Government then challenge the orders of the Delimitation Commission? Clause 10(2) of the Delimitation Bill, 2026 says, “After the publication of the orders by the Delimitation Commission, these orders cannot be questioned in any court.” Where should we go seeking fair delimitation in such a situation? Where is our guarantee? The Constitution in Article 368 says that amendments affecting the 17.04.2026 63 representation of States in Parliament must be ratified by at least half the State Legislatures, not just passed by the Parliament, ratified by the States. If this Government is so confident that the Delimitation Bill is fair, why do you not place these Bills before the Tamil Nadu legislature, before the Kerala legislature, before the Karnataka legislature or before any legislature? If the Government truly believed in cooperative federalism -- the slogan it has used a thousand times on different stages -- why are you running away from the State Legislatures? Have you even called for a meeting? Have you even consulted with the Chief Ministers? Have you even spoken to the States? Have you bothered? The Government passed the Women’s Reservation Bill in September, 2023 with great fanfare. The Prime Minister called it a civilisational commitment. But they put a condition in that very Act: the women’s reservation would only work after the 2021 census, which is not scheduled to happen till next year. When was the 2021 census supposed to happen? In 2021. But what happened? You said because of COVID, you had to postpone the census. Then you said because of operational reasons, you could not hold the census. Then by simply not talking about it, you did not hold the census. Sir, the largest democracy in the world, the country that invented modern census could not conduct census in this country. Now that it is politically convenient, they want to use 2011 census to redraw the map of the Indian democracy. They postponed the census and now they are rewarding themselves with the old census. Sir, I really admire that you are the only Government which can turn its 17.04.2026 64 failure into a political advantage. Look at when this special session has been called -- in the midst of elections in five States. And to speak about timing, because timing is everything in politics, the timing of this Bill is so nakedly, breathtakingly political that I am almost impressed by its audacity. The entire Opposition asked you to hold this session after the elections. You ignored it. And yesterday you told us that for giving women their rights, bringing these Bills are of utmost urgency. You cannot even wait for two weeks. You came to the Government in 2014. The entire Opposition has been requesting you to bring the Women’s Reservation Bill. All the leaders in the Opposition have written to you. Our leader, our Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has written to the Prime Minister saying that the Bill should be passed. The DMK women’s wing had a rally in Delhi asking for the Bill to be passed. We have raised this issue thousands of times in Parliament. And for more than a decade, you did not see or understand the urgency. But today, you cannot even wait for two weeks and you want to believe us that you care about women’s rights. Sir, this is not constitutional reform you are talking about. This is an electoral rescue strategy in these States because you are not going to do well in most of the States. The Constitution (106th Amendment) Act, 2023, the Women’s Reservation Act was welcomed by most of the Opposition Parties here and the DMK also welcomed it. But we said it then and we are also saying it now -- tying the Women’s Reservation Bill to delimitation is a trap. It was designed so that you could never have one without the other; so that the BJP can say: if you oppose delimitation, then you are opposing women’s 17.04.2026 65 rights; if you oppose the reduction of Tamil Nadu’s representation, you are against women. The BJP is using women of India as a human shield for its electoral ambitions. The women of Tamil Nadu, who have the highest literacy rate in India, who have the highest female workforce participation in the country, who have fought and won in panchayats, cooperation councils and State Assemblies, will not allow their cause to be hijacked. The women of this country today deserve reservation in the existing 543 seats without waiting for anything else. I ask the hon. Home Minister: why can you not simply amend Article 334A to remove the delimitation precondition? Why can you not give women one-third reservation in the existing constituencies through rotation starting from the 2029 election, without delimitation? If you really care about women’s representation, the path is clear and simple. Why do you refuse to take it? Sir, the women of this country have been starved of political power for decades, for centuries. There is a loaf of bread in front of us. We are saying we are starving, share it with us. But the Government is saying, “No, you cannot disturb this loaf. You cannot touch it. Wait, we will bake a huge cake and then we will bring it and then give you a small portion of that.” How does it make any sense? Is this your civilisational commitment? The women of this country have been working hard all their lives. They protected their families. They protected this country. They have sacrificed for the nation. Yet all their hard work goes unrecognised and not respected 17.04.2026 66 because you want to tie it with delimitation. Sir, my friends across the aisle will accuse me of creating fear. But the real dangers of this Bill are that our Constitution and Article 368 requires two-third majority in the Parliament to amend it. That is not a small number. It was designed to ensure that no single region, no single language group and no single community could change the fundamental rules of India without broad consent across this great nation. But what happens after this delimitation? Right now, in this House, we have 543 MPs. The two-third majority is 362. Let us say the seats are increased to a maximum of 850 MPs as per the Home Minister’s assurance, 50 per cent increase across the States. Then, the total number of seats would be around 816. With an increase across the States, the total number of seats would be around 816. States like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand together would hold approximately 400 to 420 seats in such an expanded 816 seats of Lok Sabha. In an 816-seat House, the two-thirds threshold would be 544 seats. If you add smaller BJP-aligned States like Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, the arithmetic becomes terrifyingly clear. The heartland can approach a Constitutional amendment majority without a single vote from Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, West Bengal or the North East. So, this is your plan. The collective bargaining power of the southern States will be effectively reduced. Their voices are not even required for fundamental changes in the Constitution. This will create an environment where the policies of the Union Government will be pushed down on the people who will believe 17.04.2026 67 that this nation should remain a secular democracy. This Bill looks like a prelude and a facilitator for your future agendas. Moreover, the southern States will stand to lose out on the President's election as well. Article 55 governs Presidential election vote values. Changing population definition here will alter the vote value of each MLA and MP in Presidential elections giving more electoral weight to MLAs from States that gain seats through delimitation. It directly affects the federal balance in the Presidential polls. This Bill is ambiguous in the least, misleading and it has no clarity or purpose. Let us see an illustration through the Tamil Nadu share of seats in the Lok Sabha. At present, we have 39 seats. As per these Bills, which say that 2011 census will be followed, it will become 32 seats given there is no change to the 543 seats. If the maximum seats are increased to 850, as the Home Minister told us yesterday, Tamil Nadu will gain 48 seats. But if the seats are increased to 50 per cent across the States, as Home Minister says, it will get around 59 seats. Now, I ask the Home Minister as to which of the above scenarios will happen? Will it be 2011 census or will it be just increased based on 2011 census, what the Home Minister said? These are three different numbers. We would like to have a clarity on what will happen. We have seen in this House during many decades that many promises have been made and many assurances have been given, and all that has melted into the polluted air of Delhi. Nothing has seen the light of the day. We request you to make it a part of the Bill, that is whatever assurances are there. 17.04.2026 68 Data says that nearly 80 per cent to 90 per cent of the assurances given by this Government on the floor of the House are never seen through. The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Shri M. K. Stalin has built a Joint Action Committee of democratic parties and State Governments to fight this delimitation. We have held all-Party meetings in Chennai, we have passed Resolutions, we have written to the Prime Minister, and we have demanded that the Parliament not rush these Bills through in a Special Session called without adequate notice or without Standing Committee examination or without even the courtesy of consulting the States whose future is being decided. The Prime Minister has not met us. The Government has not convened a meeting of the National Development Council. The Inter-State Council, which exists exactly for this reason, has not been convened. Instead, they called a Special Session of Parliament and scheduled these Bills for passage in a matter of a few days. This is not cooperative federalism. This is just calculative politics. In S. R. Bommai versus Union of India case of 1994, the Supreme Court has stated that States have an independent Constitutional existence and they have as important a role to play in the political, social, educational and cultural life of the people of the Union. They are neither satellites nor agents of the Centre. In the Rameshwar Prasad versus Union of India case of 2006, the Supreme Court held that the basic principles of federalism are that the Legislative/Executive authority is partitioned between the Centre and the 17.04.2026 69 States, not by any law to be made by the Centre, but by the Constitution itself. This is what the Constitution does. The States, under our Constitution, are in no way dependent upon the Centre for their legislative or executive authority. The Centre and the States are co-equal in this matter. Unfortunately, this Government does not recognise the rights of the States. It simply thinks we are here to serve the masters in Delhi according to their dictate. The DMK is not here merely to oppose. We are here to govern, to protect and to propose. The Tamil Nadu and the DMK demand that this Government should implement the Women's Reservation Bill immediately in the existing 543 Lok Sabha seats through rotational reservation, and de-link it completely from delimitation exercise, and then we can support this Bill. The women of India should not be made to wait for a delimitation exercise that serves the BJP's political interests. Withdraw these three Bills immediately and refer them to a Joint Parliamentary Committee that includes representation from all States and all Parties. Do not rush a 25-year electoral map through a special Session in 48 hours. Convene a constitutional conference of all State Chief Ministers to deliberate on the delimitation framework before any legislation is enacted. India deserves the consultation. Our Chief Minister, our Party President, yesterday promised the people of Tamil Nadu that not one seat will be lost on his watch. And yesterday, when the DMK Floor leader mentioned in Parliament that our leader, MK Stalin, hoisted a black flag, you dismissed it by saying that black flag or blue flag does not matter. You brushed it aside. … (Interruptions) Yes, Sir, you brushed it 17.04.2026 70 aside by saying a black flag or a blue flag does not matter. … (Interruptions) माननीय अÅय± : आप ÿोटेÖट कर¤, यह आपका अिधकार है । म§ आपको बोलने का अवसर दे रहा हóं ।

Spoke Asaduddin Owaisi

Spoke on 2026-04-17T00:00:00.000Z

In debate Papers laid on the Table of the House by Ministers/Members