Hyderabad: Congress leader from Telangana M Shashidhar Reddy on Monday alleged that the delimitation process to increase seven seats in Jammu and Kashmir Assembly "violates statutory provisions".

The Congress leader said the matter has been challenged in the Supreme Court.

"The petition has been filed to challenge the ongoing delimitation process to increase seven seats in Jammu and Kashmir Assembly that violates constitutional and statutory provisions," he said.

The Delimitation Commission was constituted to carry out delimitation to increase the number of seats. The Commission which finalised the draft proposal for redrawing the constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir, had invited objections and suggestions from the public by March 21.

Reddy said the term of the Commission ends on May 6, 2022. "However, this whole exercise is unconstitutional and violates statutory provisions. Even if a report is finalised and seats increased, elections will have to be conducted only in the 83 existing constituencies in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir, which were delineated in 1995. The whole delimitation process will be null and void," he claimed.

The Delimitation Commission met in Delhi last month to discuss suggestions of Members of Parliament from Jammu and Kashmir, who are associate members of the panel, on its delimitation draft proposal.