Explained: What the Union government’s new delimitation bills change and why it matters

The Union government has unveiled a three-bill legislative package that could fundamentally reshape political representation in India. The package, comprising the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-First Amendment) Bill, 2026, the Delimitation Bill, 2026, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2025, will be introduced during a Special Session of Parliament starting April 16. 

Together, these bills aim to restart India’s stalled delimitation process, lift the decades-long freeze on seat readjustment, significantly expand the Lok Sabha and then operationalise women’s reservation in legislatures. Though these are the Union government’s stated objectives, the opposition, especially political parties based in south India, has repeatedly pointed out that the bills were being pushed without consultations. 

Further, the political parties have argued that the Union government has been using women’s reservation as an excuse to start the delimitation exercise. The southern states fear that a delimitation exercise will reduce the percentage of seats for them and, consequently, alter political representation and cause further disadvantage to them.

At the centre of these proposals is the removal of the constitutional freeze imposed in 1976, which had prevented the reallocation of seats and redrawing of constituency boundaries based on updated population data. By allowing delimitation to proceed based on “such Census” as Parliament may determine, the legislative package sets the stage for a major reshaping of both State Assemblies and the Lok Sabha.

Restarting delimitation and amending Article 170

The Constitution Amendment Bill proposes major changes to Article 170, which governs the composition of State Legislative Assemblies. Article 170 enables a fresh readjustment of Assembly seats and redrawing of territorial constituencies based on a Census specified by Parliament. The amendment removes the long-standing provision that had postponed delimitation for decades.

With the freeze lifted, the total number of Assembly seats in each state could change to reflect population shifts, and constituency boundaries will be reconfigured to balance representation. The amendment also replaces earlier flexible language about the authority for delimitation with an explicit requirement that a Delimitation Commission must carry out the exercise.

The Bill revises the explanation to Article 170(2) so that the term “population” will refer to figures from whichever Census Parliament decides to adopt. Since the most recent published Census is from 2011, the legislative package allows delimitation to proceed without waiting for the next Census. This is significant because the 2021 Census was delayed, and the Census after 2026 would take years to complete.

Operationalising women’s reservation through delimitation

The amendment substitutes Article 334A to implement the one-third reservation for women in State Assemblies. The provision makes clear that women’s reservation will take effect only after a fresh delimitation exercise based on the latest published Census.

Reserved constituencies will rotate across the state in each delimitation cycle. The reservation will remain in place for 15 years from the commencement of the 106th Constitutional Amendment in 2023, unless Parliament decides to extend it.

Amendments to Article 332 ensure that the delimitation process does not dilute Scheduled Tribe representation in Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura, and Nagaland. The Bill guarantees that ST-reserved seats in these states will not fall below their current proportion.

The Delimitation Bill, 2026

Alongside the constitutional amendment, the government has circulated the Delimitation Bill, 2026, which outlines how the exercise will be conducted. The proposed Delimitation Commission will be chaired by a sitting or former Supreme Court judge and will include the Chief Election Commissioner, or a nominee Election Commissioner, as well as the State Election Commissioner of the concerned state.

Each state will also have ten associate members – five Lok Sabha MPs and five MLAs – who may assist the Commission but will not have voting rights. The Commission will determine the number of Lok Sabha seats allocated to each state and Union Territory, set the total strength of State Assemblies, redraw Parliamentary and Assembly constituencies and identify seats reserved for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and women.

The process will include the publication of draft proposals, opportunities for public objections, and hearings before finalisation. Once the Commission’s orders are published in the Gazette of India, they will have the force of law and cannot be challenged in court. The new constituency boundaries will apply to elections held after the final orders.

Expanding the Lok Sabha: Amendments to Article 81

The legislative package also proposes a major increase in the size of the Lok Sabha. Amendments to Article 81 seek to raise the strength of the House from 543 to 850 members, with a cap of 815 elected members from states and 35 from Union Territories.

The amendment removes the existing requirement to readjust the number of Lok Sabha seats after every Census. Instead, it allows Parliament to determine which Census will serve as the basis for seat allocation. Similar changes are proposed for provisions governing State Assemblies and reservations for the Scheduled Castes and Tribes.

The Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2025 makes corresponding changes for Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, and Puducherry so that their legislative frameworks align with the new delimitation provisions.

Taken together, the bills propose a significant interstate redistribution of Lok Sabha seats based on the latest available Census figures, alongside a steep expansion of the House to a maximum of 850 members, 815 from States and 35 from Union Territories, compared to the current cap of 550. They also set aside one-third of seats for women.

The existing freeze on the readjustment of Lok Sabha seats, written into Articles 81 and 82, stemmed from a political compromise crafted by then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2001 and enacted through a constitutional amendment. The Narendra Modi government is now seeking to lift that safeguard and initiate an immediate redistribution of seats using the most recent published Census, which is from 2011.

Several states, including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Telangana and Punjab, had urged the Union to extend the freeze for another 25 years beyond 2026. Instead, the Union government is seeking Parliament’s approval for an immediate overhaul of how Parliamentary seats are shared among the States.

According to projections reported by The Hindu, all large states are likely to gain seats if the Lok Sabha is expanded to the proposed 815 seats for States, but the scale of increase will vary sharply. Uttar Pradesh, for instance, could see the biggest jump, gaining 58 seats over its current 80, while Kerala would add just three seats, taking its total from 20 to 23, if allocation is based on 2011 population data.

These shifts would also change each State’s share in the Lok Sabha. Uttar Pradesh’s share could rise from 14.73 percent to 16.24 percent, while Kerala’s would decline from 3.68 percent to 2.7 percent. Bihar is projected to increase from 40 seats (7.37 percent) to 72 seats (8.47 percent), and Maharashtra from 48 to 78. Tamil Nadu, while gaining seats in absolute terms – from 39 to 50 – would see its overall share drop from 7.18 percent to 5.88 percent.

Why the Union government says these changes are necessary

In the statement of objects and reasons, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal argues that India’s demographic profile has changed significantly since the 1971 Census, which has been the basis for all representation for decades. He points to rapid urbanisation, migration, and unequal regional population growth as developments that have created large disparities between constituencies.

The delay in conducting the next Census has also been cited as a factor. Without a reset, the implementation of women’s reservation could face further delays because the 2023 law ties the rollout to a post-delimitation electoral map.

The political sensitivity of reallocating seats across states

Restarting delimitation reopens a politically sensitive issue—the redistribution of seats across states. The freeze imposed in the 1970s was meant to ensure that states which successfully reduced fertility rates were not penalised by losing representation. A new delimitation based on updated population figures could shift seats toward states with higher population growth, particularly in the Hindi heartland. Their combined Lok Sabha share would rise from 38.1 percent to 43.1 percent, while the southern states’ share would fall from 24.3 percent to 20.7 percent.

The government has stated that the proportional share of states in Parliament “as it stands today” will not be disturbed. It will now be up to the Delimitation Commission to craft a formula that upholds this assurance.

Once notified, the Commission’s orders will have the force of law and cannot be challenged in court. This is meant to make the process final, though the move may still draw criticism.

Opposition parties broadly support women’s reservation but worry about the wider impact of a new delimitation. Their concerns include how seats may be redistributed across states. Some parties also want a separate quota for women from Other Backward Classes, which the current law does not include. 

The political effects are expected to be significant. A larger Lok Sabha will raise the majority mark, which could change coalition politics. The rotation of women-reserved seats may also disrupt long-held political strongholds, pushing parties to rethink who they field as candidates and how they organise at the local level.

This report was republished from The News Minute as part of The News Minute-Newslaundry alliance. Read about our partnership here and become a subscriber here.

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