There should be no change in the existing Lok Sabha seats for the next 25 years, only 543 seats should be reserved for women: Congress

The Congress has clarified its stand on the issue of delimitation and said that the existing number of 543 Lok Sabha seats should not be increased for the next 25 years and one-third reservation should be given to women in the same seats.
After the meeting of Congress Working Committee, the highest policy-making body of the Congress, party General Secretary KC Venugopal, Communication Department In-charge Jairam Ramesh and Department Head Pawan Kheda said in a joint press conference at the party headquarters on Wednesday that 88 members participated in the working committee meeting which lasted for about 4 hours and more than 35 members presented their views on various issues. He said that many issues including youth, paper leak, rampage of Ram temple, caste-based census, border situation of the country, treatment of 'Shudhikaran' with Congress President Mallikarjan Kharge and delimitation were discussed and resolutions were passed on various issues.
Responding to a question on the Vande Mataram issue, Congress leaders said the party is sticking to its old stand on the issue. Mr. Venugopal said that the resolution passed in the Congress Working Committee in 1937 was the foundation of the party on the subject.
Mr. Venugopal said that the issue of paper leakage and irregularities in recruitment examinations was prominently raised in the meeting. He said that the government remained on the defensive on the issue during the Parliament session, while Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, is constantly raising the voice of the youth through the 'Talaba Ki Goonj' programme. There is anger among the youth across the country on this issue and the Congress stands with them. The 'Talaba Ki Goonj' program has been held in Kota, Dehradun and Prayagraj and will be held in Pune on August 22. After this, the campaign will be taken to 800 cities and small towns across the country. Mr. Gandhi will also participate in its various programs.
He said that the meeting held a wide-ranging discussion regarding reforms in educational examinations and the Chief Ministers of the 4 Congress-ruled states present in the meeting have been asked to report within a month.
On the issue of caste-based census, Mr. Venugopal said that the Modi government does not want to do it. He said that on April 23 last year, the government suddenly announced to conduct a caste-based census, but after that expected steps were not taken in this direction. He said the Congress wants the government to study the model adopted for caste-based enumeration in Telangana and Bihar and accordingly conduct a caste-based census in the country. He alleged that the government is not paying attention to this important issue and is deceiving the people.
On the issue related to Ram Mandir climbing, the Congress leaders said that it is not a matter limited only to Ram Mandir but has become a subject related to people's faith and sentiments. Describing it as a 'home-to-house dispute', he said that the working committee has demanded an investigation under the supervision of the Supreme Court. The working committee also expressed deep concern over the border situation with China. Mr. Venugopal alleged that India's foreign policy has weakened vis-à-vis the US and China. He said that there are serious questions about the agreements with China and its activities on the border. After Galwan, now questions are being raised about China's activities in Arunachal Pradesh as well. He said that the government should clarify the real situation of the border before the country. On the incident of 'Shudhikaran' after Congress President Mallikarjan Kharge's program in Haldwani, the Congress leaders said that the working committee has strongly condemned it and demanded an apology from Mr. Modi. He said that Mr. Kharge is not the leader of any particular caste but the leader of the people of the country. He alleged that an upper caste mentality was behind the incident and it was against the spirit of the Constitution.
On the issue of delimitation, Mr. Venugopal said that the Congress is clear that the existing number of 543 Lok Sabha seats should remain the same for the next 25 years and reservation should be given to women in the same 543 seats. He said that the balance of political representation among the states and the spirit of federal structure should be taken into account in the delimitation process. He said that the working committee also discussed the achievements of the organizational program. So far 798 District Congress Committees, Block Committees etc. have been formed. The meeting also thanked the people of Kerala for giving the Congress an opportunity to form the government. Chief Ministers of all four Congress-ruled states were also present in the meeting.