Election Commission Team In Assam To Review Delimitation Exercise

The full team of the Election Commission's leadership body is in Assam to check the ground reality and expectations of stakeholders, including political parties and civil society groups, on the ongoing delimitation exercise. The exercise had been stuck for 14 years. The last delimitation in Assam was done in 1976.

The Election Commission (EC) team will meet the stakeholders tomorrow.

Unlike in other states where delimitation of assembly and parliamentary constituencies are done by the Delimitation Commission, the EC is entrusted with the responsibility in Assam.

Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar, and commissioners Anup Chandra Pandey and Arun Goel are in Assam till March 28.

The EC in December last year announced the delimitation exercise of assembly and parliamentary constituencies in Assam using the 2001 census data.

Under the Delimitation Act, 1972, the last delimitation of constituencies in Assam was done by the Delimitation Commission in 1976, based on the census data of 1971.

In March 2020, the centre formed the commission for delimitation of assembly and parliamentary constituencies in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Nagaland, and Jammu and Kashmir.

The delimitation exercise had been kept on hold in Assam since 2008.

The process started in 2005 and 14 meetings were held by Delimitation Commission. The draft delimitation was presented in 2007, but it could not be completed due to several objections since Assam's National Register of Citizens (NRC) was to be updated. In 2020, the centre amended the Representation of People Act and now the EC will carry out delimitation.

The opposition has questioned the timing of the EC move and the base year for delimitation.

"This is centre's move using the EC to divert people's attention from fundamental issues. We are told it would be based on 2001 census, even when 2011 census data is already available. Also, why do it now when in the entire country delimitation would take place in 2025," Assam Congress MP Abdul Khaleque told NDTV.

AIUDF General Secretary and MLA Aminul Islam said if they are not increasing the number of constituencies, then it will be a futile exercise spending public money. "The BJP wants to politicise the issue. They want to decrease minority constituencies and polarise majority people," Mr Islam said.

Assam has over 35 per cent Muslim voters. In its 126 assembly seats, Muslims have a large say in who can be elected in 30 constituencies. They have a large presence in six out of 14 Lok Sabha seats in Assam.

In 2021, when the BJP retained power it Assam, it had pitched its commitment to protect political rights of indigenous people. Their manifesto for 2021 assembly election promised a delimitation exercise and "all steps and necessary safeguards" to protect the "political interests of the people".

Assam Chief Electoral Officer Nitin Khade said the EC will like to interact with political parties, public representatives, civil societies, social organisations and state administration officials.

"The EC wants to gather first-hand information and inputs concerning the ongoing process of delimitation in Assam. The commission expects that all stakeholders will cooperate in the endeavour and will provide valuable suggestions so that the task of delimitation is completed," Mr Khade said in a statement.

In the assembly, replying to a question by Congress MLA Rekibuddin Ahmed on the delimitation process, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had said, "Delimitation process in Assam started on January 1 this year. We are not in a position to say when it will be over as the state government is not involved in it either directly or indirectly. The Election Commission of India is a constitutional body and the state government is not associated with such a constitutional body."

"Our job is to provide the data as reflected in the census to them. A self-styled draft of delimitation is in circulation. I want to say this draft has no relevance because it is not the commission's draft and the government junks the draft as imaginary and this amounts to barring the people of the constituencies from legal rights," Mr Sarma said.