Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], August 2 : Congress MP Manickam Tagore on Sunday said his party MPs from Tamil Nadu and Puducherry will vote against the Delimitation Bill if the government attempts to pass it again, as the "legislation goes against the interests" and the "voice of the people of Tamil Nadu".
Speaking to ANI, Tagore said, "Delimitation is against the voices of Tamil Nadu people. I am one of those MPs who can say that I will vote against delimitation.10 Congress MPs from the Lok Sabha will vote against it, including Puducherry," Tagore said.
His remarks came after Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi criticised those supporting the Bill, alleging that the proposed delimitation exercise was a conspiracy to disenfranchise the people of Tamil Nadu and weaken the state's political representation.
On April 17 this year, the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026, which also included the Delimitation Bill, 2026 and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 -- was defeated in the Lok Sabha. The Bill proposed to expand Lok Sabha seats from 543 to 850, enable delimitation based on the 2011 Census, and operationalise women's reservation under the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam 2023. The bill was defeated as it could only secure 298 votes against a required supermajority of 352 out of 528 members present and voting.
On the Cauvery water issue, Tagore said that the issue is being considered as parties while claiming that all parties in Karnataka are united in opposing the release of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu.
The Cauvery water dispute is a long-running inter-state river water-sharing conflict with Karnataka and Tamil Nadu being the principal parties. The dispute revolves around how the waters of the Cauvery River should be shared, particularly during years of low rainfall.