CM Rangasamy must clarify his government’s stance on proposed delimitation: Puducherry Congress

Member of Parliament and Puducherry Pradesh Congress Committee chief V. Vaithilingam has asked Chief Minister N. Rangasamy to clarify his stand on the proposed delimitation exercise of the Central government.

Member of Parliament and Puducherry Pradesh Congress Committee chief V. Vaithilingam has asked Chief Minister N. Rangasamy to clarify his stand on the proposed delimitation exercise of the Central government.

Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday (March 5, 2025), the PCC chief said the Chief Ministers of southern States have made their stances clear based on the interest of their respective States. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has even convened an all-party meeting to build a united stance on the issue, he added. 

“Mr. Rangasamy should not discard the interests of the UT for the sake of his party’s alliance with the BJP. The Chief Minister has not uttered a word on the National Education Policy and three-language policy of the Central government. The NEP has already been introduced in the UT. Like the way he has allowed the introduction of CBSE in government schools, he should not compromise on delimitation to protect the interests of Puducherry’s future generation,” the MP said.

Considering the population density, he said Puducherry was eligible to have two representatives in the Lok Sabha and 40 legislators in the Legislative Assembly. States such as Goa and Arunachal Pradesh with the same population of Puducherry have more representatives in the Lok Sabha and Assembly now, he said.

“The projected population of Puducherry was around 16 lakh by 2026. If the proposed delimitation was based on population criteria, the UT’s Lok Sabha seat strength should go up from 1 to 2 and Assembly from 33 (30 elected and 3 nominated) to 40. The government should pass a resolution in the Assembly to press for an increase in the number of elected representatives in the LS and Assembly,” he said.

He also urged Puducherry unit of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) to utilise its strength in the Assembly to put pressure on the AINRC-BJP government to protect the interests of the UT on delimitation and the three-language policy.

The PCC president opposed any move to change the name of New Bus Stand, which was being redeveloped under the Smart City programme, and said the bus stand’s name should be retained as ‘Rajiv Gandhi bus terminus’ in honour of the former Prime Minister. The government should consider naming the proposed elevated corridor after formr PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, he added.