Mumbai: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Wednesday called the issue of delimitation of Lok Sabha seats contentious, saying it is being undertaken without a Census and could face fierce opposition from southern states.Talking to reporters in New Delhi, Raut said there was no reason for his party to oppose the ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’, or Women’s Reservation Act, which the Centre plans to implement early.The Sena (UBT) has never stood in the way of women’s electoral interests and will not, he said, adding that Maharashtra was the first state to grant reservations to women in local bodies.“It is the delimitation (of Lok Sabha seats) which will create a serious situation in the country. The issue of delimitation is contentious and is being done without conducting the Census,” Raut said.“There will be massive opposition to this by southern states,” he said.The Congress has called the Centre’s move a “calculated strategy” at a time when elections are underway in five states. State Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe accused the BJP of using the bill as a political ploy to push delimitation ahead of key elections, and questioned the timing and intent behind the move.“The government had earlier said that the women’s reservation would be implemented after the Census. Now, suddenly, delimitation is being brought in its name, which shows that delimitation is the real issue,” Londhe said.The Congress leader alleged that the move could adversely impact the reservation of Other Backward Classes, Dalits and Adivasis.He also flagged concerns raised by southern states, stating that if population is the sole criterion for delimitation, their political representation would decline. The NCP (SP) said party supremo Sharad Pawar introduced reservation for women in local self-government bodies in Maharashtra decades ago, and the BJP should acknowledge his contribution to women’s empowerment.In a statement, NCP (SP) spokesperson Mahesh Tapase said, “In Maharashtra, it was Sharad Pawar who (as chief minister) implemented 33% reservation for women in local self-government bodies, which was later increased to 50%. Pawar was a key architect of women’s empowerment in governance.”Pawar also took steps to facilitate women’s employment in the armed forces when he was defence minister and proposed 50% reservation for women in Parliament and state assemblies as early as 2012, the spokesperson further said.
