# Delimitation may widen north-south gap, warns Karti 2026-08-09T21:56:10+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Congress MP Karti P. Chidambaram warned in Sivaganga that increasing Lok Sabha seats under the proposed delimitation exercise could widen the representation gap between Tamil Nadu (40 seats) and more populous states like Uttar Pradesh (80 seats). Speaking on Sunday, he argued that even if all states' seats are raised uniformly by 50%, the numerical difference would grow from 40 to 64 seats, disadvantaging southern states that successfully curbed population growth. Chidambaram rejected DMK criticism that the Chief Minister's all-party meeting was intended to sidestep the Cauvery issue, stating his sole concern was protecting Tamil Nadu's parliamentary strength. He cautioned that population-based seat redistribution could enable gerrymandering, and cited former prime ministers Indira Gandhi and Atal Bihari Vajpayee to argue that preserving the current 543-seat strength is vital for southern interests. ## Coverage - telanganatoday.com - thehindu.com Tags: federal balance, Karti Chidambaram, Lok Sabha delimitation, north-south divide, population and seats, Tamil Nadu representation Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/karti-warns-lok-sabha-expansion-could-widen-tamil-nadu-up-gap/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/karti-warns-lok-sabha-expansion-could-widen-tamil-nadu-up-gap/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.