AIADMK general secretary and former Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) on Friday accused Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin of committing a “grave injustice” to women across the country by opposing the women’s reservation bill in Parliament.
In a social media post, EPS alleged that Stalin’s stand cost Tamil Nadu a “golden opportunity” to secure additional Lok Sabha seats, claiming the state missed out on the possibility of gaining up to 20 more MPs. He also said Stalin acted without understanding the issue and opposed it “blindly”.
EPS argued that if delimitation had been carried out based on the 2011 Census, Tamil Nadu would have lost nine MP seats by now. He claimed that due to Stalin’s opposition, delimitation would now be linked to the 2026 Census, which, he warned, could lead to Tamil Nadu losing even more seats.
Referring to earlier attempts, EPS said that during Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s tenure in 1998, then Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa had moved the women’s reservation bill, but parties in Stalin’s alliance did not cooperate to pass it. He questioned what the Chief Minister was “celebrating”, alleging that the state’s future and women’s empowerment had been undermined.
