YSRCP chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy skipped the JAC meeting on fair delimitation but wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, expressing readiness to remain content with Union Home Minister Amit Shah's assurance that the number of seats in southern states would remain intact.
Published Mar 23, 2025 | 9:19 AM ⚊ Updated Mar 23, 2025 | 9:19 AM
YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. (Supplied)
Synopsis: The YSRCP in Andhra Pradesh, even though not a constituent of the NDA, is supporting the BJP’s view on delimitation. The party that is in the NDA’s orbit and in power in Andhra Pradesh — the TDP — is a little ambivalent on the issue, saying that it is waiting for clarity from the Union government
The only non-NDA party that appears to be with the BJP in its delimitation move is the YSRCP. In fact, in Andhra Pradesh, both the TDP of the NDA and the YSRCP of the non-NDA are on the same page.
YSRCP chief YS Jagan Mohan Reddy skipped the Joint Action Committee (JAC) meeting on fair delimitation in Chennai on Saturday, 22 March, but wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, expressing readiness to remain content with Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s assurance that the number of seats in southern states would remain intact.
Jagan Mohan Reddy wrote the letter at the same time when the conclave of the Joint Action Committee of southern states was going on in Chennai, where the participants demanded a freeze on delimitation for 25 years from 2026, as it is the year when the earlier freeze comes to an end.
After southern states began raising concerns about the possible reduction in Lok Sabha seats after the 2026 delimitation exercise, Shah allayed their fears.
He said that the prime minister had kept their interests in mind and would ensure that not even one seat was reduced. He went on to say that any increase in seats would be fairly allocated, ensuring fair representation to southern states.
In his letter to Modi on 22 March, Jagan Mohan Reddy expressed gratitude to Shah for assuring the Southern states that there would be no decrease in the existing number of Lok Sabha seats and explained how it might become difficult for the Union minister to keep his word unless an amendment is made to the Constitution.
In the letter, Jagan Mohan Reddy quoted Article 81(2)(a) of the Constitution, which reads: “There shall be allotted to each state a number of seats in the House of the People in such a manner that the ratio between that number and the population of the state is, so far as practicable, the same for all the states.”
He said that this ratio has to be maintained as it is mandatory, and it would effectively prevent the home minister from honouring his promise. To cross the hurdle, an amendment has to be made to facilitate a proportional increase in seats in each state.
This way, no state would have to encounter a reduction in its representation in the House of the People in terms of the share of the seats allocated to the state in the total seats, he said. The delimitation exercise is expected to be conducted in 2026, as it is the year when the freeze on fresh delimitation ends.
Even though Jagan Mohan Reddy’s YSRCP was never officially in the NDA orbit, it was rubbing shoulders and striking high-fives with BJP leaders in the shadows when it was in power.
However, Jagan Mohan Reddy did not want to align with the NDA officially for fear of incurring the wrath of Muslims, who are perceived to have supported him in winning the 2019 elections hands down. Yet, he needed to remain under the protective wings of Modi, and the prime minister too played along, as he did not want to lose Jagan Mohan Reddy, who was a powerful leader then.
He needed Modi’s protection, with CBI cases hanging over his head like the sword of Damocles while Modi is believed to have felt that he the YSRCP chief would be of use to him, just in case.
After Jagan Mohan Reddy met his Waterloo in the electoral battle of 2024, he appears to believe that he needs Modi more now than ever before to help him overcome his present adversity. Not ready to ruffle Modi’s feathers, he seems to be coming out in support of the BJP’s delimitation move.
However, the party that is in the NDA’s orbit and in power in Andhra Pradesh — the TDP — is a little ambivalent on the issue, saying that it is waiting for clarity from the Union government on the data it proposes to use for the delimitation process, though it is understood that the exercise will be based on 2026 data (2021 census).
It is to be noted that the TDP, when it was in the BJP’s rival camp after its breakup with the party on 16 March 2018, fought against the delimitation move.
After suffering a humiliating defeat at the hands of Jagan Mohan Reddy in 2019, the TDP ploughed a lonely furrow till 9 March 2024, when it officially re-joined the NDA and won the 2024 elections with a massive mandate.
Ever since it has been gradually changing its tune. The TDP says it needs more clarity, while the party’s General Secretary Nara Lokesh recently said that there was no north-south divide in the country in the first place.
The TDP’s obscurantist policy betrays its dependence on the Union government for funds to rebuild Amaravati. However, politically, TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu may not need Modi’s support, and in fact, it is vice versa.
Naidu is also not ready to have a confrontation with Modi at this stage when his dream projects are shaping up slowly in Amaravati.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)
