Delimitation debate: Will south Indian states lose MP seats due to population-based redistribution?

The central government is preparing for the delimitation of parliamentary constituencies next year. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has objected to this. He held an all-party meeting on Tuesday, expressing anger that this is being done to suppress Tamil Nadu's voice in Parliament. In this context, let's look at what delimitation is, and how southern states are being treated because of it.

On one hand, the Narendra Modi-led NDA government is working on simultaneous elections, and on the other hand, it is speeding up the delimitation process. Preparations are underway to conduct delimitation of parliamentary constituencies next year. With this, the discussion has started that southern states will lose because of this decision taken by the Center. 

What is Delimitation anyway? 

Delimitation is the process of redrawing the boundaries of parliamentary or assembly constituencies. This delimitation was brought to the fore with the idea of allocating seats so that representatives are based on population. The main purpose of this delimitation is to represent an equal number of people in the House of Representatives. The delimitation process is conducted based on the census. That means, the states with a larger population will have more parliamentary seats. 

Telugu states

Will the number of seats decrease in the southern states?

It is known that the delimitation process is likely to be undertaken in 2026. After the delimitation in 1976, it was allowed again in 2002, but the number of parliamentary seats was frozen until 2026. If this process starts, the new distribution of seats will be based on population. However, there are arguments that the southern states will be unfairly treated because of this process. The reason for this is that the southern states are ahead in population control compared to the northern states. The number of MP seats in the northern states is likely to increase as the population is high in those states. 

Many people are criticizing that this will be a favorable thing for the BJP. Similarly, it is said that the importance of the southern states in the Parliament will decrease, and the voice of the people here will not be heard in the Parliament. That is why they are demanding that the delimitation process based on population should be stopped. If the number of seats increases based on population, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh are likely to get more MP seats. That is why the argument has come to the fore that the development indices of the states should also be taken into consideration. 

How many seats are likely to decrease in which states? 

➼ If delimitation takes place, the number of MP seats in Tamil Nadu is likely to reach 31 from the current 39. That means it will lose 8 seats. 

➼ The number of seats in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana is likely to reach 34 from the current 42. 

➼ The number of seats in Kerala is likely to reach 12 from the current 20. 

➼ The number of seats in West Bengal is likely to decrease to 38 after delimitation from the current 42. 

➼ The number of seats in Odisha is likely to decrease to 18 from the current 21. 

➼ The number of MP seats in Karnataka is likely to decrease to 26 after delimitation from the current 28. 

➼ It is also known that states like Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, and Uttarakhand are likely to lose one seat each. 

Which states are likely to get more seats? 

➼ Uttar Pradesh is likely to get the highest number of MP seats if the delimitation process is completed. The number is likely to increase to 91 from the current 80 MP seats here. 

➼ The number of seats in Bihar is likely to increase by another 10 to 50 from the current 40. 

➼ Similarly, the number of seats in Rajasthan is likely to increase to 31 from 25. 

➼ The number of seats in Madhya Pradesh is likely to increase to 33 from the current 29. 

➼  Along with these, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Delhi, Chhattisgarh, and Maharashtra are likely to get one MP seat each.