South Need Not Be Concerned, Delimitation To Increase Lok Sabha Share Of All States By 50%: Sources

Last Updated:April 15, 2026, 1:01 PM IST

Women’s Reservation & Delimitation: “2011 population will not be binding factor, so proportionately nothing changes. This will assuage the concern of southern states,” say sources

The special session will be held from April 16-18. (PTI File)

Amid the concerns of the southern state over the delimitation for implementation of the women’s reservation bill, government sources told News18 that the share of all states in Lok Sabha will rise uniformly by 50%.

The central government has proposed increasing the number of Lok Sabha seats to 850 as part of its intention to implement the Women’s Reservation Act or the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam from the 2029 Lok Sabha polls, with 815 seats proposed to the states and the remaining 35 for the Union Territories, according to sources.

The Lok Sabha has 543 seats at present. The government intends to move a Constitution amendment bill for the implementation of a 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha from 2029 in a special sitting of Parliament on April 16-18.

“The 2011 population will not be the binding factor. That means proportionately nothing changes. This will assuage the concern of southern states that their representation might drop,” said sources.

“There will be no disadvantage to southern states. The same proportion that exists today will be maintained. The headline number will rise by 50 per cent to 850 and that number for each state will also rise by 50 per cent,” they clarified.

What is the concern of southern states?

Southern states are primarily worried that a population-based delimitation (redrawing of electoral boundaries) will lead to a significant loss of political representation in Parliament. This is often described as a “penalty for success,” as these states effectively implemented national population control and family planning policies while northern states saw much higher growth.

Delimitation aims to ensure the principle of “one person, one vote”. Because northern states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have seen rapid population growth, they would gain many more seats, while southern states like Kerala and Tamil Nadu could see their relative share of seats in the Lok Sabha decline.

A shift in the balance of power toward the North could mean that national policies are increasingly tailored to northern priorities. Southern leaders fear their states’ voices on critical national issues would be marginalised.

Since population is a major factor in the Finance Commission’s formula for allocating central fundssouthern states worry they will receive a smaller share of tax revenue despite contributing more to the national GDP.

Leaders argue that states that invested in education, healthcare, and women’s empowerment (which led to lower fertility rates) should be rewarded, not punished with reduced political strength.

Southern parties’ response to the changes

Telangana’s Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) Working President KT Rama Rao on Wednesday issued a strong warning to the Central Government over the issue of delimitation of constituencies. He cautioned that if the process results in reduced representation for Southern states, it would not remain merely a political or legislative exercise but could spark a widespread public agitation across South India.

In a social media post, he urged the Central Government to understand the ground realities and expressed hope that “those in power in Delhi will listen and act with wisdom”.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin has convened an emergency meeting of DMK MPs on Wednesday to discuss the repercussions the state is likely to face due to the Centre’s proposed delimitation exercise. Criticising Chief Minister M K Stalin for opposing the Centre’s proposed delimitation exercise, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Tuesday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Minister Amit Shah have already assured that this will not affect Tamil Nadu.

Left leaders on Tuesday raised strong concerns over the proposed constitutional amendments linked to women’s reservation and delimitation, warning of their potential impact on India’s federal structure and political balance.

With agency inputs

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