BJP Rejects Congress Claims on Delimitation

Hyderabad: BJP state president N. Ramchander Rao on Tuesday said the delimitation of constituencies was a routine constitutional exercise undertaken after the Census, and alleged that the Congress' claim that it is based purely on population was misleading.

Addressing party leaders, Rao said several southern states, despite having lower populations, had more Assembly segments, while some northern regions, such as Himachal Pradesh and Delhi, had fewer populations but a higher number of Assembly constituencies. He said the proposed increase in Assembly segments would be carried out proportionately to existing constituencies and not solely on population.

He alleged that the Congress and the I.N.D.I.A. bloc were spreading “misleading information” regarding the impact of delimitation on southern states, and asserted that these states would receive Assembly segments on par with northern regions.

Party spokesperson P.L. Srinivas said delimitation would be a proportional exercise based on existing Assembly segments and Lok Sabha constituencies to ensure balanced representation. He said southern states would not lose seats after the proposed delimitation exercise following the 2026 Census, and asked people to be cautious of what he described as “false” and “divisive” propaganda.

Separately, BJP Legislature Party leader A. Maheshwar Reddy welcomed a Supreme Court ruling that persons who convert to another religion would lose entitlement to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe benefits. He said the court had clarified that SC/ST status and reservation benefits do not continue after religious conversion, in line with earlier judgments and state precedents.

Reddy said the ruling would prevent misuse of reservation benefits and ensure they reach eligible SC/ST communities. He added that the Supreme Court’s position was consistent with earlier High Court rulings, including those in Andhra Pradesh, which held that reservation is linked to caste-based backwardness and not religion.