Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin harshly criticized the Center over women’s reservation and accused it of trying to use it as a “weapon” to counter the opposition before initiating the population-based delimitation process.
“The Union government is not interested in implementing reservations for women. If their concerns were real, they could have done it immediately. Instead of doing so, the BJP-led Center is thinking of using it as a weapon to tackle dissent and undertake population-based delimitation,” he told PTI in an interview.
“Hence reservation of women should be implemented immediately without showing identification as reason,” the DMK chief added.
Expressing concerns over the proposed delimitation exercise, the CM said it was the DMK that raised the first voice asserting state rights after realizing that Tamil Nadu would be affected by the proposed exercise. He also attacked his rival and AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami over the demarcation issue.
Noting the efforts made by the DMK to raise the issue of population-based delimitation, he said an all-party meeting and a meeting of chiefs had been held under the auspices of the Joint Action Committee seeking fair demarcation of boundaries. It sought a 25-year demarcation freeze and adherence to it based on the 1971 census.
He added: “We urged the federal government not to punish countries that successfully implemented population control programs.”
He said the party has come up with “Tamil Nadu poradum, Tamil Nadu vellum” (Tamil Nadu will struggle, Tamil Nadu will win) and this is the DMK’s position.
“However, Palaniswami, who is seeking votes for the BJP’s entry through the back door, has so far remained silent on delimitation and this is a betrayal of the people of Tamil Nadu.”
