OPINION: TAKING INDIA BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD
Current Affairs for 25th September, 2023
OPINION: TAKING INDIA BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD
The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Eighth Amendment) Bill, 2023, which promises 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and Legislative Assemblies of states and NCT Delhi, sheds light on the delimitation of electoral constituencies.
Since the 1970s there has been no change in the number of Lok Sabha seats. The Constitution (42nd) Amendment Act, 1976 froze the delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies as per the Census of 1971, upto the Census of 2001. However, in 2001 the day of reckoning was pushed 2026 (by the 84th Amendment Act).
While the boundaries of electoral constituencies were redrawn in 2002 (as per Article 82), there was no change in the number of seats in Lok Sabha.
Article 81 says that each State gets seats in the Lok Sabha in proportion to its population. The freeze on delimitation affected in 1976 was to allay the concerns of states which took a lead in population control and which were faced with the prospect of reduction of their number of seats in Lok Sabha.
The exercise of delimitation also implicates the constitutional values of federalism and representation of states as consolidated units. However, the difference in population between the north and the south states is still an issue that MPs of today face.
The Census of 2021 could not be held owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Home Ministry has indicated that the next Census and subsequent delimitation will be conducted after the 2024 polls. Upon the completion of Census and the redrawing of electoral boundaries, the change in the numerical composition of Lok Sabha will have to be reflected in the Constitution through an amendment.