With just six days left for the Tamil Nadu Assembly election, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin and DMK cadres staged statewide protests wearing black shirts, hoisting black flags and burning a copy of a proposed delimitation plan.
Though the election underway is for the Assembly, the DMK has sought to make Lok Sabha constituency delimitation a key campaign issue. The report said the party’s strategy team felt Stalin’s campaign was not gaining as much traction as AIADMK leader Edappadi K. Palaniswami’s, prompting the DMK to look for sharper themes.
Stalin warned the Centre that Tamil Nadu would strongly oppose any delimitation exercise that, in his view, could weaken the state politically or strengthen northern states. DMK leaders described delimitation as a “black law” and claimed it could marginalise Tamils, but the protests were reported to have drawn limited public attention.
The article also notes that delimitation is a complex subject to communicate in the remaining campaign days. It argues the BJP is using the timing to link delimitation with implementing the women’s reservation law, while critics point out the ruling party lacks the two-thirds support needed for a constitutional amendment.
BJP leaders, including women’s wing national president Vanathi, accused DMK and Congress of opposing women’s representation under the guise of delimitation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah have said no state, including Tamil Nadu, would be harmed by delimitation, and Modi reiterated in the Lok Sabha that women’s reservation is a necessity of the times.
