What is Delimitation? Does India Really Needs One?
What will be the impact of the 2027 census data on the seats of each state?
Synopsis
The data for the 2027 Census will start off with fresh Delimitation. As of today, we still follow the ratio of the Lok Sabha seats allocated to States through the 1973 Delimitation. Even after the 2002 Delimitation, no reallocation was made. However, this is expected to change. The speculation is that Northern States will gain more seats and Southern States will face a reduction. What is Delimitation? Let's find out.
AdvertisementWhy is Delimitation Important?
Delimitation is the process of fixing the number of seats and boundaries of territorial constituencies of each state for the Lok Sabha and Legislative Assemblies. The process is done by the Delimitation Commission of India. In India, the Delimitation Commission has been constituted four times: 1952, 1963, 1973, 2002.
In the Indian Constitution, Articles 82 and 170 have provisions for Readjustment and division of each state into territorial constituencies (Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies) by such authority and in such manner as the Parliament, by law, may prescribe. Moreover, Articles 330 and 332 deal with re-fixing the number of seats for SC/STs in the Lok Sabha and Legislative Assemblies of States.
AdvertisementWhy is Delimitation in News Currently?
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Government moved an amendment in the month of April to start a fresh Delimitation of the Lok Sabha Constituencies; however, it collapsed. The reason was to garner a two-thirds majority in Parliament so that it could pass that Constitutional Amendment moving for such Amendment and begin Delimitation.
But is the Constitutional Amendment necessary for this purpose? The answer is no, as the data of the 2027 Census will trigger a fresh Delimitation itself. Article 81 and 82 of the Constitution say that an Amendment is only required if the existing provisions relating to Delimitation are to be changed.
When was the Last Delimitation Conducted?
After the 2001 census, the last Delimitation was conducted in 2002 during A. B. Vajpayee’s tenure, and its recommendations were implemented in 2008 during the Manmohan Singh Government. 2004, the Lok Sabha elections occurred in between and afterwards, the 2009 Lok Sabha elections took place based on the changed constituencies.
However, one thing to note here is that in the 2002 Delimitation, no seats were allocated to individual States and only the existing constituencies within each state were redrawn. Then, when were the seats reallocated in the Lok Sabha? Based on the 1971 census, when Delimitation was conducted in 1973, the Lok Sabha seats were allocated among States. And the same ratio exists even today.
AdvertisementWhat do we understand by Delimitation?
Delimitation upholds the ‘One Man, One Vote, One Value’ principle of our democracy. It simply means that every Lok Sabha constituency should have roughly the same number of voters. Sometimes, Politicians can manipulate the constituency boundaries for their own unfair gains if Delimitation is not done in a transparent manner.
This can be done through cracking, i.e. when voters supporting one party are thinly spread across constituencies and packing, i.e. when voters supporting one party are packed in high concentration across constituencies, which leads to wastage of votes. This is known as Gerrymandering. It shows that equal numbers alone do not guarantee equal value for every vote. Therefore, how Delimitation is done greatly impacts democratic representation and electoral outcomes.
