Davanagere, April 6 -- A sharp war of words erupted over the contentious issue of delimitation of constituencies on Monday, with union Minister Pralhad Joshi dismissing Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's concerns as "utter nonsense," intensifying the North-South political undercurrent ahead of key electoral battles.
Joshi's strong rebuttal came in response to Siddaramaiah's assertion that southern states could be disadvantaged in a future delimitation exercise, receiving only around 24 per cent representation compared to the rest of the country. Rejecting the claim outright, Joshi said the figure has historically remained constant and is rooted in a proportional framework followed since independence.
He maintained that past delimitat...