Context:
After a considerable hiatus, delimitation has returned to the fore when the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister voiced his concern over changes in Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assembly constituencies. The delimitation exercise would next be conducted after the first Census post 2026. Meanwhile, arguments have flared across party lines on the impacts of the 2021 Census delay on federalism and political representation.
Constitutional Provisions Regarding Delimitation
- Definition
- Delimitation process is the fixing of number and boundaries of constituencies for the Lok Sabha and the State Assemblies.
- Authority
- The Delimitation Commission constituted under an Act of Parliament carries out this process.
- Historical Background
- The delimitation exercises were held on the basis of the 1951, 1961, and 1971 Census.
- Present Scenario
- The number of Lok Sabha seats was stopped at 543, as per the outcome of the 1971 Census, when the population of India was counted at 54.8 crore. This freeze aimed for population control enhancement, revised after the completion of the first Census after 2026.
Delimitation Issues
- Population growth uneven
- Higher population growth has recorded for the Northern States (like UP, Bihar, MP, Rajasthan).
- On the contrary, Southern and small northern States (like Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Northeast) grew slowly due to the effective population control measures.
- Newly apportioned seats based on Census will soon deny representation from southern and smaller States.
- Two Possible Scenarios Indicated for Delimitation
- Scenario 1: Retain the number of seats at 543 and redistribute these among states based on latest population figures.
- Scenario 2: Bring in an increment of Lok Sabha seats to 848, proportionately increasing all states.
- Federal Imbalance Possibilities
- If a population based criterion exists, then larger northern states will gain political weight through more seats while the southern and smaller northern states become politically weaker.
- The above could transform the representation of southern states from 24% into near 19%, creating a reduced voice in national policymaking.
- This could undermine the federal structure, therefore causing discontentment among states with a successful population management.
Possible Solutions and Way Forward
- 543 Cap for Lok Sabha Seats
- Similar to the U.S. House of Representatives, which has capped its seats at 435 since 1913, despite population growth.
- It has had 543 MPs in India over the last five decades, whereas the population spoke from 55 crores to 145 crores.
- India, which expects its population to peak at 165-170 crore and will subsequently decline, should retain this number.
Increase Number of State Assembly Seats
- While seats in Lok Sabha stay the same, the number of MLAs in each State can be increased according to demographics for better local representation.
- Representation through an alternative model
- Weighted voting system: MPs could have different voting weights based upon the population so that the bigger States may not have lesser representation.
- Additional Rajya Sabha representation: Smaller States could, through increased representation in the Rajya Sabha, be compensated for their disability.
Source: TH
