Congress Questions Government on Delimitation Process Amid Ongoing Political Tensions

New Delhi, October 20 (Daily Kiran) : Congress General Secretary and Rajya Sabha member Jairam Ramesh posed three critical questions to Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju regarding the government’s stance on the delimitation issue. He inquired whether the government has prepared any new proposals and why it continues to oppose the opposition’s demand for an all-party meeting.

This development follows Congress President and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, who wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 16, urging that any proposal regarding delimitation be finalized only after a meeting with all parties.

In response to Kharge, Rijiju dismissed allegations that the opposition was being sidelined, claiming he had reached out to Congress multiple times in March and April 2026, but the party did not provide any dates for discussions. He noted that the government sought consensus by engaging with other parties, including the DMK, Samajwadi Party, and Shiv Sena (UBT).

Ramesh took to social media platform X to highlight Kharge’s letter and Rijiju’s recent response. He pointed out that the minister referenced selective discussions held by Home Minister Amit Shah with some political parties concerning delimitation in March 2026.

However, Ramesh criticized Rijiju’s response for failing to mention any promises made by Shah during those discussions. He noted that these commitments were not included in the constitutional amendment bill presented in the Lok Sabha on April 16, 2026.

On April 17, 2026, the Lok Sabha rejected this bill outright, with many of the consulted parties voting against it, according to Rijiju.

Arguing that the government should clarify its position rather than relying on past discussions, Ramesh insisted that Rijiju must answer three specific questions related to the next steps in the delimitation process.

He asked, “Does the Modi government have any concrete ‘new’ proposal for delimitation that it has discussed with any party?” Ramesh also questioned why the government refuses to convene an all-party meeting to discuss this ‘new proposal’ transparently.

He emphasized that opposition parties, through Kharge, have consistently demanded such a meeting, with Kharge having formally raised the issue “not once or twice, but six times,” addressing it four times to the Prime Minister and twice directly to Rijiju.

Ramesh’s third question focused on whether the government plans to reintroduce the constitutional amendment bill that has already been rejected in the Lok Sabha and whether it intends to attempt to pass it again.

He asked, “Is the Modi government planning to bring back this failed bill and attempt to pass it with a two-thirds majority, despite its clear controversies and likely failure?”