Published Jul 16, 2026 | 5:58 PM ⚊ Updated Jul 16, 2026 | 5:58 PM
DMK and Congress
Synopsis: The DMK has ruled out joining hands with the Congress in Parliament during the upcoming Monsoon session to oppose the Centre’s reported plans to reintroduce the delimitation Bill. The development follows speculation that the BJP was courting the DMK and the NCP (SP) to ensure the Bill’s passage.
The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) has ruled out the possibility of its joining hands with its erstwhile ally, the Congress, in Parliament during the upcoming Monsoon session to oppose the Centre’s reported plans to reintroduce the contentious delimitation Bill.
Senior DMK leader and party spokesperson TKS Elangovan told South First that there was no “chance to join together with the INC for now,” and added that the party had not yet taken a final decision on its strategy for the Monsoon session.
He said the party was not opposed to delimitation itself but was against altering the existing number of parliamentary constituencies.
“Our stand on delimitation is that it can’t be stopped, but the number of constituencies should continue as of today,” he added.
A consultation meeting of DMK MPs with party chief MK Stalin will be held on the evening of Thursday, 16 July. According to sources close to a DMK MP, the party will oppose the Bill but “not with the INC.”
The Centre is expected to reintroduce the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill during the Monsoon session after an attempt to secure its passage in the Lok Sabha failed three months ago.
The Bill was first introduced in April alongside the Delimitation Bill, 2026, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026, with the stated objective of facilitating the implementation of 33 percent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies.
Opposition parties, chief among them the DMK, have argued that the proposed legislation could pave the way for a population-based delimitation exercise that would reduce the parliamentary representation of southern States, which have recorded lower population growth through sustained population control measures.
In the last few days, speculation has been rife that the BJP was courting both the DMK and the Nationalist Congress Party (SP) to secure enough votes to push through the legislation in the upcoming Monsoon session.
Though senior Congress leader P Chidambaram urged both parties to stand firm in their opposition, the DMK’s response has been closely watched after its relationship with the Congress, and by extension its role within the INDIA alliance, imploded after the Congress joined hands with the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) in Tamil Nadu in the immediate aftermath of the 2026 Assembly polls, ending its 19-year alliance with the DMK.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
