NEW DELHI, October 21 (Aalimi Nation) – The Congress on Tuesday questioned the government's position on delimitation, asking whether it has prepared a fresh proposal and why it is declining to convene an all-party meeting on the issue. The party made the remarks after receiving a reply from Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju to a letter from its president, Mallikarjun Kharge.

The exchange of letters

Kharge, who is also Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 16. According to the party, he asked the government to clarify the status of the Monsoon Session, which has not been prorogued, and to hold an all-party meeting before bringing any new proposal on delimitation to Parliament. Rijiju replied on Monday.

Congress general secretary and Rajya Sabha member Jairam Ramesh said the minister's reply "failed to address key questions about the government's plans". Rijiju's letter, he said, cited consultations held by Home Minister Amit Shah with some political parties in March, but did not address commitments that Congress alleges were made in those talks and were not reflected in the Constitution Amendment Bill introduced in Parliament in April.

Questions put to the government

Ramesh posed three questions on social media. He asked whether the government has a firm fresh proposal on delimitation, whether it has discussed any such proposal with political parties, and why it has refused to hold an all-party meeting on what he described as a contentious subject.

He also noted that the Constitution Amendment Bill was defeated in the Lok Sabha on April 17, and said that most of the parties named by the minister as having been consulted had voted against it. These assertions are Congress's account; the text of Rijiju's letter was not available for independent reading, and no separate government response to the questions had been published at the time of writing.

Background

Delimitation is the redrawing of parliamentary and assembly constituency boundaries based on population data. The subject is politically sensitive because states differ in population growth, and some have worried that a change could alter their weight in Parliament. The Constitution Amendment Bill introduced this year was defeated in the Lok Sabha in April, which means the government would need to bring a new bill or a revised proposal to move ahead.

In July, Ramesh said Congress would oppose strongly any delimitation bill if it were reintroduced, and described the move as a way to secure a two-thirds majority in Parliament. The party said at the time that it would try to keep the opposition united. The government has not accepted that description in the material reviewed.

What to watch

The key questions are whether the government confirms a fresh proposal, whether it agrees to the all-party meeting that Kharge has sought, and when the Monsoon Session will be formally brought to a close. Any move to table a new bill would require the support of a large majority, which makes the positions of regional parties important. For now, the exchange between the Congress and the government remains one of letters and public statements, and neither side has set out a timetable.