Chennai: Union Minister Ramdas Athawale on Friday said he was confident the DMK would support the constituency redelineation (delimitation) bill and the women’s reservation bill when they come up in Parliament.
In an interview, Athawale flagged what he described as a rise in crimes against Dalits in Tamil Nadu. Citing figures, he said 2,888 cases were recorded in 2025, including 88 murders, and that 44 murders were reported in the first six months of 2026.
At the same time, he said the number of inter-caste marriages—8,352 over the past five years—was a positive sign. He alleged that parental opposition to inter-caste love marriages was contributing to an increase in honour killings, and urged the Tamil Nadu government to bring in a specific law to prevent such crimes.
Athawale also said the Centre was implementing several welfare schemes for SC, ST and other backward communities, and that the state government should make use of them. He said he had met the Chief Minister to discuss the matter.
On the upcoming parliamentary session, he claimed the INDIA bloc had “broken apart” and said his side would ensure passage of the women’s reservation and delimitation bills. Even if the DMK does not vote in favour, he said he expected it would not back the Congress and might stay away from voting, adding that delimitation posed “no danger” to Tamil Nadu and therefore the DMK would not oppose it.
