DMK Dials Delimitation with T-Shirt Protest in Lok Sabha
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Thursday (Image credit Sansad TV)
DMK Builds up Stalin Show on Delimitation to Stall Lok Sabha
By Amit Kumar
New Delhi, March 20: The Lok Sabha on Thursday failed to transact business amid disruptions. The DMK MPs staged protests in the Lok Sabha, inviting ire of Speaker Om Birla.
The Lok Sabha Speaker refused to conduct the business of the House amid the DMK protests. Birla said that he would not transact the business of the House if the DMK MPs continued with T-shirt protest.
The DMK MPs came to the Lok Sabha, wearing T-shirts. They spotlighted slogans on T-shirts. They had the issue of delimitation spotlighted in T-shirt slogans.
Slogans on T-shirts were ‘Tamil Nadu will fight’; ‘Tamil Nadu will win’; and “Justice in Delimitation’. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin is hosting a conclave of regional leaders in Chennai on the issue of delimitation.
“I will not conduct the business of the House if you stay in the House wearing T-shirts,” said Birla. He asked the DMK MPs to change their attires.
The Lok Sabha witnessed repeated adjournments, leading to final adjournment for the day. “You all should read the Rule 349 of the business manual of the House,” said Birla.
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The DMK MPs persisted with their protests. They raised slogans in the House. They also didn’t obey the instructions of the Chair.
The DMK claims that Tamil Nadu may see loss in the number of the Lok Sabha seats after delimitation. Stalin claimed on number of occasions that the Lok Sabha seats from Tamil Nadu will come down from the current 39 to 31.
Union Minister for Home Affairs Amit Shah during his visit to Coimbatore this month had rejected the claims that Tamil Nadu will lose Lok Sabha seats. Shah said that no state will lose the current strength in the Lok Sabha.
Stalin’s invitation to attend the meeting in Chennai on delimitation has been accepted by Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren. Former Odisha Chief Minister Navin Patnaik will also attend the meeting.
The DMK is claiming that the southern and the eastern states will lose strength in the Lok Sabha. The ruling party in Tamil Nadu also claims that the northern and western states will gain more seats in the Lok Sabha.
Last delimitation to increase the strength of the Lok Sabha was done in 1972 on the basis of the 1971 Census. Later, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi froze delimitation for 25 years in 1976. The Atal Bihari Vajpayee government further extended the freeze for another 25 years. The freeze on delimitation is expiring next year, in 2026.
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