Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin’s campaign against the delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies is increasingly drawing support from parties across the political spectrum in South India. But it is also making his allies in the Hindi belt uncomfortable.

Delimitation refers to the process of redrawing the boundaries of constituencies to reflect the latest population numbers. But in India, delimitation has not been conducted at the national level since 1976. The number of Lok Sabha MPs of each state has been frozen since then.

However, if constituencies were to be redrawn in the near future, states in the South are expected to see their representation in the Lok Sabha decrease. This is because they have been successful in limiting the growth of their populations – but northern, Hindi-speaking states have not.

As a result, a demand to the delimitation freeze for three more decades was made at an all-party meeting convened by the Tamil Nadu government on March 5.

However, Stalin’s strong stand has created a rift in the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance. In theory, INDIA parties in states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar that are estimated to gain more seats are sympathetic to concerns about the South getting sidelined. However, they do not agree...