Published Apr 16, 2026 | 11:05 PM ⚊ Updated Apr 16, 2026 | 11:05 PM
Amit Shah said there will be no injustice to any southern state in delimitation.
Synopsis: Shah said Tamil Nadu will get 20 more seats, Kerala 10, Telangana 9 and Andhra Pradesh 13 seats. Maharashtra, which, after Uttar Pradesh, has the second highest number of MPs in the Lok Sabha, will gain 24 more seats.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah tabled the Delimitation Bill, 2026, in the Lok Sabha on Thursday, 16 April, amid widespread opposition across the country, especially from South Indian states.
While introducing the Bill, Shah said the southern states are pushing a false narrative on delimitation. He said the South will gain after delimitation.
Also Read: ‘No injustice will be done to any state’: PM Modi
The minister said Tamil Nadu, where Chief Minister MK Stalin burnt a copy of the Bill, will get more seats. “As for Tamil Nadu, where many people have been expressing concerns, I want to assure the people of the state that your representation will not decrease; it will increase,” Shah said.
According to the proposed pro-rata model, Tamil Nadu will have 59 seats, 20 more than the current 39, maintaining a 7.23 percent share of the House.
“The second state is Andhra Pradesh. It currently has 25 seats, with a representation of 4.60 percent in the Lok Sabha. With an increase of around 50 percent, its seats will rise to 38, and its share will increase from 4.60 percent to about 4.75 percent. In Telangana, there are 17 seats, with a 3.13 percent share in the current House of 543 members. After a similar increase of around 50 percent, the number of seats will go up to 26, and its share will rise to about 3.18 per cent,” Shah told the Lok Sabha.
Also Read: The Delimitation Bill’s hidden cost
Karnataka’s total number is expected to rise to 42 from 28 (5.14 per cent). Kerala may have 10 more MPs, up from the current 20 (3.67 percent).
Maharashtra, which has the largest number of MPs after Uttar Pradesh, will get 24 more seats. Maharashtra currently has 48 seats, while UP has 80.
The southern states have been claiming that the population-based delimitation will leave them with fewer seats compared to the northern Indian states with high populations. This, they claimed, will tilt representation in favour of states with large populations, such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, whereas others with better population control methods will have fewer MPs.
Opposing the Bill in the Lok Sabha, Congress MP KC Venugopal said the government’s move amounted to a “fundamental attack on the Indian federal structure.”
Rejecting the Opposition claim, the government said that the planned 50 percent increase in seats will give more seats to every state in South India.
In a post on X, Shah said, “There will be no injustice to any southern state in delimitation.”
