Lok Sabha seat readjustment needs fair approach

Source: The post Lok Sabha seat readjustment needs fair approach has been created, based on the article “A case for a fair seat allocation” published in “The Hindu” on 8 April 2025. Lok Sabha seat readjustment needs fair approach.

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper2-polity- issues and challenges pertaining to the federal structure.

Context:  A national debate is ongoing about the readjustment of Lok Sabha seats after the upcoming Census. However, this issue is often mistakenly called delimitation. While delimitation redraws constituency boundaries, seat readjustment—mandated by Article 82—is meant to reflect population changes. The freeze on seat numbers since 1971 has led to major imbalances.

For detailed information on Delimitation Exercise in India read this article here

Historical Background and Constitutional Basis for Seat Allocation

1. The current strength of the Lok Sabha (543 seats) was fixed using the 1971 Census when India’s population was around 54.79 crore.
2. Despite the population increasing to an estimated 141 crore by 2025, the number of seats has remained frozen due to a constitutional amendment extending this freeze until 2026.
3. Article 81 mandates that the ratio of seats to population should be the same across States, and Article 82 requires readjustment after each Census.

Population Disparities and Regional Concerns

1. States like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar witnessed a disproportionate rise in population due to the poor implementation of family planning.

2. For instance, Uttar Pradesh’s population grew from 8.38 crore (1971) to 24.1 crore (2025), and Bihar from 4.21 crore to 13.1 crore. In contrast, southern States, particularly Kerala, successfully controlled population growth—Kerala’s population increased by only 68% in 50 years.
3. If readjustment follows Article 81 strictly, northern States would gain many more seats. Uttar Pradesh could rise from 80 to 240 seats, while Kerala would only go from 20 to 36. This raises concerns in southern States about political marginalization, as they could lose relative representation despite better governance.

Equity-Based Readjustment Approach

1. A fair method is to apply a uniform 68% increase in seats, based on Kerala’s population growth.
2. This would give UP 134 seats, Kerala 34, and Tamil Nadu 66, maintaining inter-State balance.
3. Total Lok Sabha strength would rise to 912.
4. Although this violates Article 81(2)(a), the article argues that this rule is now outdated and unfair.

Alternative Formulae for Seat Allocation

Several formulae are proposed to ensure equity:

1. 15 lakh per seat model: UP gets 160 seats; Kerala will get only a few seats more than 20. This increases the gap between northern and southern States.
2. Historical average-based model: In 1952, each constituency had 7.6 lakh people; in 1971, it became 10 lakh. Using the new Parliament’s capacity (800 seats), each seat could represent about 18 lakh people. Under this, UP gets 134 seats, Kerala 34, Tamil Nadu 66.

Conclusion

Readjustment must uphold the constitutional principle of equity, not just population-based arithmetic. As India is a “Union of States,” seat allocation should balance regional representation fairly. The issue, though technical, has significant political implications and must be approached with sensitivity and foresight.

Question for practice:

Examine how the proposed readjustment of Lok Sabha seats after the upcoming Census could impact the balance of regional representation in India.