Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], April 6 (ANI): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Sunday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allay the 'fears' of the people of Tamil Nadu that the next delimitation exercise would not lead to reduction in the state's share of parliamentary seats.

Stalin called on Prime Minister Modi to make a promise that states that have successfully controlled population growth will not be 'penalised' in the delimitation exercise.

In a post on X, Stalin said, 'Standing on Tamil soil, the Prime Minister must give a clear guarantee: 'Tamil Nadu and other states that have successfully controlled population growth will not be penalised in the impending delimitation exercise. Their share of parliamentary seats in percentage terms will remain untouched.'

'Hon'ble PM @NarendraModi should make this promise publicly, allay the fears in the minds of the people of Tamil Nadu, and follow it up with a constitutional amendment in Parliament. This is the only way to ensure fair delimitation. I sincerely hope he will act,' he added.

https://x.com/mkstalin/status/1908791758059954414

He was referring to PM Modi's visit to Tamil Nadu's Rameswaram on Sunday, where the PM inaugurated the new Pamban bridge.

On March 22, Stalin chaired the first meeting of the Joint Action Committee (JAC) in Chennai over the proposed delimitation issue. The meeting was joined by Karnataka Deputy CM DK Shivakumar, Telangana CM Revanth Reddy, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan, Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann and other prominent leaders.

After the first meeting of the JAC on delimitation, a resolution was unanimously adopted, asserting that any delimitation exercise carried out by the Centre should be done 'transparently' and after discussion and deliberation with all stakeholders.

The PM, on Sunday, in Tamil Nadu dedicated the Pamban Bridge and multiple national highway projects to the nation and also laid the foundation stone of other road infrastructure projects.

PM Modi mentioned how the new Pamban bridge is connecting the 'thousands of years old' Rameswaram city to a modern architectural marvel.

'A town that is thousands of years old is being connected by the 21st-century engineering wonder. I thank our engineers and workers for their hard work. This bridge is India's first vertical lift railway sea bridge. Big ships will be able to sail under it. Trains will also be able to travel faster on it. I just flagged off a new train service and a ship a short while ago,' PM Modi said. (ANI)