Opposition should have backed delimitation

Apr 18, 2026 | 18:15 IST

Southern Discomfort: Freezing seats to reward family planning violates one-person, one-vote rule

Analysts had expected BJP to invoke equal representation to increase the proportion of seats in the Hindi belt, where family planning was weakest, and the population expansion was highest. Instead, it proposed a flat 50% increase in seats for all states regardless of population. BJP has the moral high ground and sounder logic

Every citizen should have equal voting power in a democracy. Alas, that has not been so in India. Opposition parties on Friday blocked the BJP proposal for a new delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies while expanding the number of seats by 50% in each state. The Opposition’s objections are weak and self-serving. BJP, too, has its agenda but has stronger logic on its side.

The proposed expansion of Lok Sabha seats by 50% will serve three purposes. One, populations in constituencies have changed since the last delimitation in 2002, so a revision is required. Two, the number of constituencies must be expanded as the number of voters per constituency has become too high, by far the highest in any democracy. Three, the legislation reserving one-third of LS seats for women needs to be implemented by expanding the number of seats to accommodate them.

TOI

TOI

Opposition should have backed delimitation

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TOI

Opposition should have backed delimitation

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