Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Monday urged couples from Tamil Nadu to "have babies immediately" after marriage as he stressed on the disadvantageous position that effective family planning measures have put it in.
The Chief Minister's remark came a day ahead of the all-party meeting he has called on March 5 to discuss the issue of delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies. Stalin has referred to the exercise as a "sword dangling over Tamil Nadu's head" and claimed that states in Southern India "stand to lose representation" in the Lok Sabha if delimitation is implemented based on population census.
"Earlier we used to say, take your time and have a baby. But now the situation has changed, and we should say it now. We implemented family planning successfully, and now we are facing such a situation. So I won’t say take your time, but immediately have your baby," Stalin said, urging the residents of the state to "set aside their egos" and heed his appeal.
On February 25, Stalin emphasised that Tamil Nadu’s successful implementation of family planning policies had now placed the state at a disadvantage. “If delimitation is implemented based on population census, Tamil Nadu will lose eight MPs. This will lead to Tamil Nadu losing representation in Parliament," he had stated.
The BJP, on the other hand, maintains that the Centre will protect the interests of Tamil Nadu with Union Home Minister assuring residents during his recent visit that there will be no reduction in the number of Lok Sabha seats in the state.
Stalin recently announced that 40 political parties registered with the Election Commission of India were invited to the meeting to deliberate on the implications of constituency delimitation on March 5.
Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are among states who have either reversed laws and rules that mandate or incentivize population control measures or said they would do so. Bharat Rashtra Samiti leader KT Rama Rao recently backed the concerns raised by Stalin and proposed that the delimitation exercise be carried out based on the contribution of each state to the GDP instead of its population.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
