Chennai: Tamil Nadu BJP state president K Annamalai criticised the all-party meeting convened by Chief Minister MK Stalin to discuss the alleged impact of delimitation on the state, calling it “funny” and dismissing the concerns as “imaginary.” Taking to his social media platform X, Annamalai remarked that the meeting appeared to be the result of “prolonged hallucination” and asserted that “Come 2026, we will ensure ample rest is given to Thiru @mkstalin.”
Today’s all-party meeting, conducted by TN CM Thiru @mkstalin, seemed like the effects of prolonged Halucination.
We also know the cause.
Come 2026, we will ensure ample rest is given to Thiru @mkstalin avl. pic.twitter.com/hwdRvGjsUt
— K.Annamalai (@annamalai_k) March 5, 2025
The meeting, held between 10 a.m. and noon, saw participation from the ruling DMK, main opposition AIADMK, Congress, VCK, actor Joseph Vijay’s TVK, and the Communist parties. However, BJP, Naam Tamilar Katchi, and Tamil Maanila Congress boycotted the event, citing assurances from the Centre that delimitation would not adversely impact Tamil Nadu.
The meeting was convened despite repeated assurances from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and other BJP leaders that the delimitation process would not reduce parliamentary representation for southern states. Addressing concerns over seat allocation, Amit Shah had stated on February 26 in Coimbatore that the delimitation exercise would not negatively impact the southern states, as new constituencies would be allotted on a pro-rata basis. He emphasized that Tamil Nadu, along with other southern states, would only gain additional seats rather than losing representation.
“CM (Stalin) and his son (Udhayanidhi Stalin) are trying to mislead the people of Tamil Nadu by raking up baseless issues. The Narendra Modi-led central government has already clarified in Parliament that the redrawing of parliamentary constituencies will not alter the proportion of Lok Sabha seats from southern states,” Annamalai said.
Stalin’s Fear of Reduced Representation
Chief Minister MK Stalin has argued that if the delimitation process is conducted based purely on population figures, Tamil Nadu’s share of parliamentary seats could be reduced from 39 to 31. At the meeting, he warned that such a move would suppress Tamil Nadu’s voice in national politics and weaken its influence in Parliament.
Stalin stated, “A delimitation exercise will only make matters worse. If the number of parliamentary seats is increased to 848, Tamil Nadu should get 22 additional seats. But if delimitation is based on population, we will get only 10 seats, thereby losing 12 seats. In either case, the voice of Tamil Nadu will be suppressed.”
He further added that the “status quo should continue for at least three more decades” and urged southern states to collectively oppose delimitation based on population.
Despite the absence of the BJP and its allies, the all-party meeting unanimously rejected the upcoming delimitation process, passing several resolutions against it. The meeting also announced the formation of a Joint Action Committee (JAC) comprising representatives from Tamil Nadu’s political parties to coordinate opposition efforts. This committee will invite political parties from other southern states to join the “fight against delimitation.”
One of the key resolutions adopted at the meeting stated, “Delimitation based exclusively on population figures from the upcoming census will affect the political representation rights of Tamil Nadu and other South Indian states. It is entirely unjustifiable to reduce parliamentary representation of Tamil Nadu solely because the state has proactively implemented population control measures in the national interest.”
Another resolution called for an extension of the freeze on delimitation beyond 2026, stating that the policy established based on the 1971 population census should be continued for the foreseeable future.
AIADMK, PMK Join Stalin in Opposing Delimitation
The AIADMK, the principal opposition party in Tamil Nadu, also took a firm stance against delimitation. Former AIADMK minister D. Jayakumar, representing the party at the meeting, said, “Parliamentary seats of Tamil Nadu should be preserved for equal representation. AIADMK has always stood against delimitation based on population, and we continue to hold the same position.”
Even the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), a key ally of the BJP-led NDA, opposed delimitation. PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss urged Chief Minister Stalin to reach out to leaders from other states and form a Joint Committee of South Indian Political Parties to resist any changes to Tamil Nadu’s representation in Parliament.
BJP’s Boycott and Annamalai’s Criticism
While the DMK and AIADMK stood united in opposing delimitation, the BJP dismissed the meeting as unnecessary fear-mongering. Annamalai reiterated that the BJP government at the Centre had no intention of reducing Tamil Nadu’s parliamentary seats and criticized Stalin’s attempt to create a “false narrative.”
“The fear of delimitation affecting the southern states is imaginary. The Prime Minister has already made it clear that no state will lose Lok Sabha seats. Instead, Tamil Nadu and other states will gain constituencies on a pro-rata basis,” Annamalai said.
He further argued that Tamil Nadu’s ruling party was misleading the people by portraying the delimitation process as a threat to the state’s political influence.
