Jana sees no scope for more seats

Leader of the Opposition K. Jana Reddy on Thursday said fresh delimitation of Assembly segments in TS and AP may not be a reality in the near future due to several constraints.

He was speaking to the media following reports that Chief Ministers K. Chandrasekhar Rao and N. Chandrababu Naidu had recently announced that the Centre had responded positively to the fresh delimitation of Assembly segments.

Mr Jana Reddy said only Prime Minister Narendra Modi would be able to take a political decision on the matter but as per his understanding that may not happen before the 2019 elections.

Mr Jana Reddy said he had held discussions with legal pundits on the possibility of getting an amendment to the Constitution to pave the way for increasing the number of Assembly seats and it was revealed that there were many “ifs and buts to it”.

“Section 26 of the AP Reorganisation Act clearly states that any delimitation in the Telugu states is subject to Article 170 of the Constitution which had capped the delimitation till 2026. If an amendment need to be brought, it should be a Constitutional amendment for which two thirds of Parliament members as well as 50 per cent of state legislatures have to agree,” Mr Jana Reddy said.

“Can all this happen before the next elections? I say no,” Mr Jana Reddy, one of the most senior legislators, said.

He said for any increase in the Assembly size, the number of seats reserved for SC and ST communities will also go up, and there will be pressure from other states too.