Congress MP warns delimitation could ‘harm’ border states, calls for serious review
New Delhi, Aug 9 (IANS) Congress MP Manish Tewari on Sunday voiced strong opposition to the proposed delimitation exercise, arguing that it could adversely affect states in North India, South India and the Northeast, many of which share international borders, while disproportionately benefiting the central part of the country.
Tewari said the concerns of northern and northeastern states, particularly those located along India’s international borders, must be taken seriously before any decision is taken on the delimitation process. He maintained that the proposed exercise could have wider implications for regional representation and the federal balance.
His remarks came amid a renewed political debate over the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill and the Delimitation Bill, 2026. The proposed legislation, which seeks to amend the provisions connected with the already passed Women’s Reservation Act, 2023, had earlier failed to secure passage in the Lok Sabha during the Budget Session in April.
Speaking to IANS, Tewari said, “The basic thing is that when I had a debate in the Lok Sabha on the delimitation Bill in April, I had also said that this delimitation will cause harm to North India, South India and Northeast India. If anyone benefits from this delimitation, it will only benefit Central India.”
“And that is why, for the states that are on the border, in North India or Northeast India, this (delimitation) is not in their interest, and that is why this point needs to be considered very seriously,” he added.
The Congress MP also argued that the Centre should not make the implementation of women’s reservation dependent on the delimitation process. He said the Women’s Reservation Bill, which has already been passed by Parliament, should be implemented using the existing number of Lok Sabha seats rather than waiting for a fresh delimitation exercise.
“The government is talking about the women’s reservation, then why not implement it in the current number of seats? Why not give one-third of the reservation to women from these 543 seats? It was the Congress party which brought in the women’s reservation Bill, and if they (the government) truly want to implement it, then do it with these 543 seats,” Tewari said.
The renewed discussion over delimitation of parliamentary constituencies in India has gained momentum around the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, which seeks to expand the strength of the Lok Sabha and revise the allocation of seats ahead of the 2029 general elections.
The Centre is seeking political consensus following the earlier legislative setback, while the proposed changes have triggered concerns among several states over federal equity, regional representation and the balance of political power.
States in southern India and other progressive regions have raised concerns that a population-based delimitation could disadvantage them for successfully implementing population-control measures over the years.
They fear that states which have witnessed faster population growth could gain a greater share of parliamentary seats, while states that successfully stabilised their population could see their relative representation decline.
The Centre, however, maintains that the delimitation exercise is intended to modernise democratic representation and ensure that parliamentary constituencies reflect the country’s changing population.
–IANS
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