New Delhi: The central government is going to delimit the Lok Sabha and state assemblies before the 2029 general elections. Based on the new delimitation, the total number of Lok Sabha seats in the country can increase to 848, out of which Uttar Pradesh alone will have 143 seats, which is currently 80. At the same time, Tamil Nadu’s seats will remain stable at 39 to 49 and Kerala at 20, which will reduce the percentage representation of South India.
This delimitation will happen after the census to be conducted in two phases after 2026. This census will be completed before 1 March 2027. For the first time, the caste data included in it will become the foundation of delimitation. The biggest challenge for the Delimitation Commission will be to balance the demand of the southern states, which states that the determination of parliamentary seats only on the basis of population would be unfair to those states which gave priority to population control in the 1970-80s. The central government has assured these states that their concerns will be taken into account. Home Minister Amit Shah had said in Coimbatore in February that no seat from South India would be taken away due to delimitation.
In September 2023, the Nari Shakti Vandan Act was passed in Parliament, which provides for reservation of 33 seats for women in the Lok Sabha and Legislative Assemblies, but this reservation can be implemented only after delimitation, as a similar provision has been made in the Constitution. A senior government official said that we intend to implement women’s reservation by 2029. The census will start soon and we are confident of completing it in three years. After this the process of delimitation will start.
