New Delhi: Congress leader Shashi Tharoor Wednesday slammed Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu for his criticism of the Opposition for defeating the Constitution amendment bill in Parliament and pointed out that southern states’ chief ministers are concerned over losing out on political weight.
Tharoor shared an interview of Naidu on X in which the Andhra Pradesh chief minister was quoted as saying that the intention of the government was absolutely clear from the beginning and it had stated it on the floor of the House that there will be 50 per cent increase of seats across the states and the proportion of seats will not change.
Naidu said there was only a matter of omission from the text of the Bill and the opposition unnecessarily made it an issue.
In his post, Tharoor said, Naidu ji, let’s try a thought experiment. Say your salary is 2 lakhs and your driver’s is 20,000. You announce a 50% increase for everybody. Your salary is now 3 lakhs, and your driver’s is 30,000. The percentage or proportional increase is the same – but aren’t you much better off than your driver, than you used to be
That’s what your fellow Southern CMs are concerned about. You don’t think there’s any difference between UP’s 80 MPs today versus Kerala’s 20 MPs, if it tomorrow becomes 120 vs 30, he said, adding that it would be the same proportionate difference, but huge difference in political weight with 40 more UP MPs against 10 more Kerala MPs.
Is that of no concern to you at all, Tharoor asked Naidu.
The Congress Tuesday had said Naidu is being unfair in criticising the opposition for defeating the Constitution amendment bill in Parliament, and asserted that super-arrogant Home Minister Amit Shah never moved an amendment that would make it clear that the strength of each state in the Lok Sabha would also increase by 50 per cent.
April 17, the Constitution amendment bill to implement reservation for women in legislatures in 2029, and an increase in the number of seats of the Lok Sabha, was defeated in the Lower House.
While 298 members voted in support of the Bill, 230 MPs voted against it. Of 528 members who voted, the bill required 352 votes for a two-thirds majority.