CHENNAI: Another round of verbal warning broke out over the all-party MPs meeting convened by chief minister C Joseph Vijay on delimitation, with DMK and AIADMK on one side and TVK on the other. DMK deputy general secretary Kanimozhi Karunanidhi on Saturday termed the meeting a “political drama” intended to divert attention from the Mekedatu dam controversy and the Cauvery water dispute.School education minister A Rajmohan hit back, alleging that DMK had stayed away from the meeting to “please its new friend,” an apparent reference to BJP. Health minister K G Arunraj accused DMK of cosying up to BJP to shield its ministers from corruption cases.Talking to reporters, Kanimozhi said there was no pressing need for an urgent meeting as the Union govt had neither released an official draft bill or notification on delimitation nor tabled one in the current session of Parliament. She said DMK president M K Stalin was the first to flag the risks posed by delimitation, and the previous DMK govt had convened an all-party meeting at which TVK general secretary N Anand participated and signed the resolution, she added.In a statement issued earlier, Kanimozhi said DMK’s stand remained unchanged and was based on the resolution unanimously adopted at the all-party meeting convened by the previous govt last year. The resolution sought a constitutional amendment to extend for 30 years beyond 2026 the use of the 1971 Census as the basis for determining parliamentary representation. It also demanded that, in the event of an increase in Parliament’s strength, Tamil Nadu’s 7.18% share and the proportional representation of other southern states in both Houses be retained on the basis of the 1971 population ratio.Kanimozhi said southern states should not be penalised with reduced representation for successfully implementing population-control measures and achieving socio-economic progress.AIADMK questioned the urgency behind CM Vijay convening the meeting when no fresh bill or official announcement had emerged. In an X post, party IT wing called the exercise a “hurriedly staged drama” intended to distract from the Cauvery-Mekedatu row.VCK chief Thol Thirumavalavan said Tamil Nadu’s political parties were seeking statutory and constitutional safeguards, rather than oral assurances from Union home minister Amit Shah. TNCC chief B Manickam Tagore said Tamil Nadu must safeguard its existing allocation of 39 Lok Sabha seats and reject political overtures or compromise formulas.
