Chennai, Mar 22 (Reporter) Asserting that the Union Government's arguments that States will get additional seats on a pro-rata basis under the proposed delimiation could not be taken at face value, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday said federalism was not a gift from the Union, but a right of the States. The fight against delimitation was to preserve India’s soul as a diverse and inclusive democracy, he said. In his address at the first JAC meeting on delimitation convened by the Tamil Nadu government here, he said the Union has not been able to clarify whether this pro-rata distribution will be based on the current strength of parliamentary seats or on the basis of population figures. Urging the Union Government to alleviate the fears of the States on the issue, he said it was the Union's responsibility to refrain from unilateral measures and preserve the essence of democracy and federalism. "We need to ensure that the delimitation exercise is carried out in such a way that our current proportional share of seats in the Parliament is retained", Mr Pinarayi Vijayan said. "This is the consensus that we all need to arrive at. I am sure that we will be able to do that, and that this meeting will serve as strong foundation for the formation and functioning of the Joint Action Committee which will take the steps forward in making our consensus upheld at the national level", he added. Stating that federalism is not a gift from the Union, but a right of the States, Mr Vijayan said "Our collective resistance is not just about seats; it is a fight to preserve India’s soul as a diverse and inclusive democracy." Mr Pinarayi Vijayan said the proposed delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies is hanging over our heads like the sword of Damocles. Various reports indicate that the BJP led Union Government is going ahead into the delimitation process without any consultation. This sudden move is not driven by any constitutional principle or any democratic imperative, but by narrow political interests, he argued. The delimitation process, if it is undertaken after the Census, will lead to a large increase in the number of seats of northern states, while there will be a significant reduction in the representation of the southern states in Parliament, the Kerala CM observed. "This will suit the BJP as they hold greater influence in the north. If delimitation is carried out purely on the basis of population, then Kerala and other southern states will suffer as we have been bringing down our population since 1973 when the previous delimitation was carried out, in which the number of seats in the Lok Sabha was reorganized", he added. "Our States are now set to be punished precisely for our sincere implementation of the National Population Policy of 1976", he said, adding, when a State faithfully implements a nationally recognised policy, it deserves special consideration for that very reason. "Not only is this consideration being denied, but we are even being penalised for fulfilling our duty to the nation...This is the crux of the current issue", he said...////...