Reimagining delimitation, Pg7

Key Highlights:

• Southern states face reduced financial allocations due to lower population growth, as the Finance Commission (FC) assigns 50% weight to population size in tax revenue redistribution.
• The 84th Constitutional Amendment (2001) froze the number of Lok Sabha seats until the first census after 2026, impacting representation.
• The upcoming Delimitation Commission (DC) will decide on seat allocation before the 2029 elections, potentially widening the gap in the absolute number of seats between northern and southern states.
• Four solutions are proposed, including increasing total Lok Sabha seats, introducing equality in the Rajya Sabha, raising Vidhan Sabha seats, and changing seat allocation ratios based on population size and population control efforts.

Detailed Insights:

• The 84th Amendment Act aimed to motivate states to pursue population stabilization by extending the freeze on seat numbers, but it now disadvantages states that successfully implemented family planning programs.
• The delay in the 2021 Census, with results expected by October 2028, suggests a strategy to maintain power by controlling more populous northern states.
• Increasing Lok Sabha seats while retaining proportional distribution using the 2011 Census could minimize disruption but doesn't address the issue of higher population growth leading to more MPs.
• Introducing equality among states in the Rajya Sabha, similar to the U.S. Senate, would face opposition due to its potential impact on the ruling party's dominance in the Lok Sabha.
• Raising the number of seats in Vidhan Sabhas to equalize representatives per 1,000 population would improve representation in populous states at the state level but is unlikely to be supported by the ruling party.
• Allocating 60% of Lok Sabha seats based on population size and 40% on efforts to reduce population growth, similar to the Digressive Proportionality principle used in the European Parliament, could be a viable negotiating position for the southern states.
• The Finance Commissions already use multiple criteria, including income distance, population size, demographic performance, and tax efforts, to address complaints of unfairness in fund allocation, providing a precedent for the DC to consider population control efforts.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Delimitation: The process of redrawing boundaries of parliamentary or assembly constituencies to represent population changes.
• Finance Commission (FC): A constitutional body that recommends the distribution of tax revenues between the Union and the States.
• Digressive Proportionality: A principle ensuring fair representation in legislative bodies by giving larger entities more seats but fewer per person and vice versa.