Objecting to the Union government’s Delimitation Bill (2026), Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin burnt copies at a black-flag protest on Wednesday, April 16.
Attired in black, Stalin and several DMK leaders raised a black flag at Namakkal. In a statement later, Stalin shared video footage of the protest and said, “Let the flames of resistance spread across Tamil Nadu! Let the arrogance of the fascist BJP be brought down!”
Stalin added, “This fire will now spread across the Dravidian land. It will rise, it will rage, and it will bring the BJP’s arrogance to its knees.”
Calling delimitation a “black law”, Stalin alleged that Tamils would be made “refugees in our own land”.
He also recalled the anti-Hindi agitations of the 1950s and 1960s and warned the BJP that similar protests would happen in Tamil Nadu if delimitation negatively impacts the state.
The Union government is set to introduce three bills on April 16 to expand the Lok Sabha from 543 to 850 seats. The bills will also bring into effect a 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies under the 2023 Women’s Reservation Act.
The bills have triggered widespread anger from opposition leaders who have pointed out that the south may lose its voice in Parliament. If delimitation is carried out based on the 2011 census, the southern states, along with West Bengal and Odisha, may lose a significant number of seats, experts have speculated.