New Delhi: Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday defended the delimitation proposal, asserting that the current freeze on Lok Sabha seats since 1976 contravenes the constitutional principle of “one person, one vote, one value.” He highlighted that the number of electors in several constituencies had increased to a level where one MP could not adequately represent their seat.
Addressing concerns regarding the women’s reservation bill, Shah dismissed claims that it was a tactic to postpone the caste count. He noted that Prime Minister Modi anticipated potential doubt and thus directed the Union Cabinet to approve a caste census, ensuring that the upcoming enumeration will include a column for caste.
In his remarks during the debate on constitutional amendment bills related to women’s reservation and delimitation, Shah emphasized that key objectives of the bills are to ensure a time-bound implementation of women’s reservations by 2029 and to uphold the principle of equitable representation.
Shah pointed out that the Malkajgiri Lok Sabha seat in Telangana has over 39 lakh voters, and 127 constituencies contain more than 20 lakh voters each. He refuted opposition concerns that delimitation would diminish the influence of southern states in the Lok Sabha, asserting that on average, southern constituencies have fewer voters than those in the north.
Regarding caste quotas, Shah affirmed that the BJP government would adhere to the collective will of Parliament. He stated that ensuring representation and participation of all citizens in legislative bodies is crucial, indicating a willingness to engage with the matter. However, he ruled out quotas for Muslims, citing constitutional violations.
Shah adopted a forceful stance regarding women’s quotas, akin to the Prime Minister’s previous statements, warning the opposition of potential backlash. He stated, “If you do not support the bill, it will fail, but women across the country are watching who stands in their way. You will have nowhere to hide in the elections. The opposition will face the consequences from women, not just in the 2029 Lok Sabha elections but in every election moving forward.”
Later, he criticized the opposition on social media for celebrating the defeat of the bills. A notable moment in his response came when he accepted Congress MP K C Venugopal’s proposal to increase the number of seats in every state by 50%. However, he rejected Venugopal’s other request to separate the women’s reservation bill from the delimitation proposal, describing it as an “enticing trap” that would deny women their quotas in 2029.
Shah directly challenged Rahul Gandhi’s claims of Congress supporting OBC causes, calling the party “the most anti-OBC party.” He cited historical instances such as the non-implementation of the Kalelkar Commission’s recommendations under Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi’s inaction on the Mandal Commission’s suggestions, and Rajiv Gandhi’s opposition to those recommendations.
Additionally, he noted that Congress has never appointed an OBC member as Prime Minister, while the BJP has made Narendra Modi, from an extremely backward caste, the Prime Minister. Shah remarked that Congress and its allies in the INDIA bloc have a track record of obstructing legislative proposals for reservation, having done so five times since the idea was first proposed during P V Narasimha Rao’s government. He recalled how the party had leveraged its allies to oppose the proposal while referencing historical opposition to signature initiatives of the Modi government, including the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and the Citizenship Amendment Act.
