Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday defended the ongoing delimitation exercise in the state, rejecting allegations of “gerrymandering” raised by the Indian National Congress.

In a strongly worded statement on social media, Sarma said the term “gerrymandering” was being “excessively used” by Congress leaders to delegitimise the delimitation process and mislead the public.

He asserted that the exercise was “not a conspiracy” but a “long overdue correction” after years of what he described as political neglect and vote-bank appeasement.

According to the Chief Minister, the real distortion of representation had occurred earlier due to demographic changes, particularly in parts of Lower Assam, which he claimed were ignored for electoral reasons.

The remarks come amid an ongoing political debate in the state over the implications of the delimitation process.