What happened

Congress’s parliamentary strategy group has set its agenda for the Monsoon Session of Parliament. The party wants to oppose any reintroduction of the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, which is reported to seek an increase in the strength of the Lok Sabha and to initiate delimitation.

The strategy meeting was chaired by Sonia Gandhi and attended by senior leaders including Rahul Gandhi. Mallikarjun Kharge is reported to have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking an all-party meeting before any revised version of the bill is introduced and asking for time for detailed study.

Congress leaders also said they will raise issues including alleged embezzlement of donations linked to the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, alleged corruption, paper leaks, inflation, foreign policy shortcomings, ethanol blending, deforestation, and alleged violations of the rights of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, and minorities.

Background and earlier position

Delimitation is the process of redrawing boundaries of parliamentary and assembly constituencies. In India, delimitation is tied to constitutional and legal arrangements on representation, and it is a recurring political issue because it affects the balance of seats across states.

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