Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], March 14 (ANI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said that he will attend the meeting on delimitation, called by Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin on March 22 and reiterated that the INDIA alliance remains united on the issue.

Speaking about his participation, Shivakumar stated, 'On behalf of the government and the party, my Chief Minister asked me to go there. But at the same time, we have to discuss this matter with the party High Command.'

Regarding his position on the delimitation issue, Shivakumar said, 'I am still at the discussion stage on this matter,' emphasising that no final decision has been made yet.

He also reiterated the unity of the opposition alliance, stating, 'INDIA alliance is always united,' signaling that despite ongoing discussions, the alliance remains firmly committed to a collective approach on this important issue.

Meanwhile, Congress leader V Hanumantha Rao also backed Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin for calling a meeting of Chief Ministers and leaders of various parties regarding the proposed delimitation of Parliamentary constituencies, claiming that 'South India' is being 'completely' ignored.

Speaking to ANI, Rao said that the North Indian states are being given more importance while the South Indian states are being completely overlooked.

'Tamil Nadu has rightly called for a meeting concerning delimitation. I hope everyone supports this issue, as the North is getting more importance, and the South is being completely ignored. I hope our Chief Minister (Revanth Reddy) will also join the meeting, and the Karnataka Deputy CM will join the meeting as well. Leaders from the North should also join MK Stalin's meeting,' Rao said.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday said that he has received Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin's letter regarding state autonomy and constituency delimitation.

While stating that he would be unable to attend the meeting scheduled for March 22 due to prior commitments, he said that Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar would represent Karnataka in his place.

Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy criticised the BJP-led Central government over the delimitation exercise scheduled for 2026, saying that BJP is doing this to settle scores with the people of the southern states because they never allowed BJP to grow.

Revanth Reddy said that he would participate in the meeting called by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin in Chennai on March 22 to discuss the strategy of the States that are potentially disadvantaged by the delimitation process.

He also said that he would call an all-party meeting in Telangana to discuss the delimitation.

Reddy said that an action plan is being prepared to thwart the Central Government's 'conspiracy' against the Southern States through the delimitation of Assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies.

The Chief Minister was speaking to the media after meeting a DMK delegation in Delhi to discuss joint action to ensure that the delimitation will not reduce the share of seats in the Parliament.

'This is not a delimitation of constituencies, but an attempt to reduce the importance of the southern states. We (southern states) have served the country a lot. The BJP does not have much representation from the southern states. The BJP wants to take revenge on these states where they faced defeat,' Reddy said.

'We will thwart the conspiracies hatched by the BJP-led central government against the southern states. The Congress already decided in principle to fight against the Central government,' he added.

Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy also expressed his support for Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin's stance on the delimitation issue, saying, 'I welcome Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin's stand.'

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Stalin-led DMK government has been protesting against the Central government's three-language formula in national education policy and delimitation.

Tamil Nadu CM Stalin called for a united political front against the proposed delimitation exercise, urging various parties to join forces in opposing what he termed a 'blatant assault on federalism.

'Congress leader P Chidambaram expressed his fear that if delimitation is conducted, Southern states will lose 26 seats in the Lok Sabha, and their voices will not be heard.

'Delimitation is a serious issue. It was frozen in 1971. A census taken after 2026 will lead to delimitation, followed by re-determination of the seats. According to our calculation, if it is redistributed according to the current population of states, and the state's numbers are changed, our Southern states, which have 129 seats, will come down to 103. The five southern states will lose 26 seats, whereas the populous states -- where population is growing -- will gain seats, especially UP, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan,' Chidambaram said. (ANI)