Kumaraswamy slams Opposition, says southern states will lose big

Opposition's stance will harm southern states: Kumaraswamy

Union Minister and JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy on Sunday expressed disappointment over the Opposition's stance during recent proceedings in the Lok Sabha, alleging that their actions could adversely impact southern states. Speaking on the issue, Kumaraswamy said, "The day before yesterday's incident on the floor of the House, the way in which Opposition leaders happily rejected the bills, I'm really disappointed as a southern state representative in the Lok Sabha... the southern part of India is going to lose in a big way because of DMK's attitude."

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'Stalin misled people on delimitation'

He further accused Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin of misleading the public regarding discussions on delimitation and the Women's Reservation Bill. "Last month, our Home Minister invited them to discuss the process of the delimitation and how to implement the Women's Reservation Bill... They agreed and were satisfied. But after that meeting, Stalin tried to mislead the people of not only Tamil Nadu, but the entire country by saying we are not getting our equal rights. The way in which they behaved on the floor of the House to defeat the bill, in the future, will affect the southern part," Kumaraswamy said.

Stalin urges delay in delimitation

Earlier, Stalin alleged that the failure of the Constitutional Amendment Bill forced clarity on "who stands with Tamil Nadu's interests," and criticised Palaniswami and his party AIADMK, accusing them of acting in line with directions from Delhi. Describing it as only a "half-victory," Stalin urged the Centre to introduce a constitutional amendment to postpone constituency delimitation for another 25 years, until 2051.

Constitutional Amendment Bill defeated

On April 17, Opposition parties in the Lok Sabha voted against the Constitution Amendment Bill. During the three-day Special Session from April 16 to April 18, multiple leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, discussed the bill. Multiple Opposition leaders, including Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, and Congress leader KC Venugopal, also participated in the discussion.

The 131st Constitution Amendment Bill to implement women's reservation failed to pass in the Lok Sabha as the INDIA bloc refused to vote in favour of the delimitation process. The Lok Sabha took up the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-first Amendment) Bill, the Delimitation Bill, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill together for passing. In the division that took place on the Constitution Amendment Bill following the debate on the three bills, 298 members voted in favour and 230 against. With the Constitution Amendment Bill defeated, the government later said it did not want to pursue the two other linked bills. (ANI)