custom-ads

Supreme Court notes population-based delimitation will be unfair to southern states

The court was hearing a few pleas seeking the right to take recourse to surrogacy after fertility treatment had failed.

South First Desk

Published May 10, 2025 | 1:17 PM ⚊ Updated May 10, 2025 | 1:17 PM

Delimitation

Critics argue that delimitation based on current population would affect the representation of Southern states. (iStock)

Synopsis: The Supreme Court has observed that population-based delimitation may disadvantage South India, which has effectively controlled its population. With the 2026 delimitation approaching, southern states—except Andhra Pradesh—oppose the move, fearing reduced parliamentary representation. They argue that states adhering to population control should not be penalised, while those with higher growth gain greater political power unfairly.

Delimitation of electoral constituencies based on population would make South India lose out in Parliament, the Supreme Court has said.

A Bench of Justices BR Nagarathna and Satish Chandra Sharma observed that South India has controlled its population. The population in Southern India has been decreasing even as North Indian families expanded, the Bar and Bench reported the observation the apex court had made on Friday, 9 May.

The court was hearing a few pleas seeking the right to take recourse to surrogacy after fertility treatment had failed.

The Union government’s move to delimit electoral constituencies in 2026 has sparked considerable opposition from South Indian states, which had controlled their population based on a central policy.

Also Read: KTR calls delimitation move a ‘threat to South India’s future’

Pushback against delimitation

In India, parliamentary representation has been based on the 1971 population census for over five decades. However, with this freeze set to expire in 2026, debates and concerns have resurfaced.

Southern states have been demanding the Centre not to punish them for adopting and implementing the central policy to control population. Delimitation based on population, they feared, would slash their representation in the country’s lawmaking bodies, while those states that had not implemented the policy would gain, and get more representation.

The opposition to the proposed delimitation also saw the South Indian states, barring Andhra Pradesh, coming together in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, in March 2025. A joint council formed decried the Centre’s “divisive” tactics.

Andhra Pradesh has an NDA government, led by N Chandrababu Naidu’s TDP, at its helm.

Also Read: A call for ‘fair delimitation’

Key decisions made by the first JAC meeting

The Joint Action Committee unanimously adopted the following resolutions during its first meeting:

  1. Transparent and inclusive delimitation process: Any delimitation exercise carried out by the Union Government to improve representative democracy should be conducted transparently, enabling political parties, state governments, and other stakeholders to participate and contribute to the process.
  2. Extension of the 1971 census freeze: Given that the legislative intent behind the 42nd, 84th, and 87th Constitutional Amendments—aimed at national population stabilisation—has not yet been achieved, the freeze on parliamentary constituencies based on the 1971 census population should be extended for another 25 years through necessary constitutional amendments.
  3. Protection for States with effective population control: States that have successfully implemented population control programs, resulting in reduced population growth, should not be penalised. The Union Government should enact the necessary constitutional amendments to ensure this protection.
  4. Formation of a Parliamentary co-committee: A co-committee consisting of Members of Parliament from the represented states will be formed to coordinate parliamentary strategies and counter any attempts by the Union Government to undertake a delimitation exercise contrary to the principles outlined above.
  5. Joint representation to the Prime Minister: The co-committee MPs shall submit a joint representation along the above lines to the Honourable Prime Minister of India during the ongoing parliamentary session.
  6. State Assembly resolutions: The political parties represented from different states in this meeting will initiate efforts to introduce appropriate resolutions in their respective state assemblies to reflect these demands.
  7. Public awareness campaign: To communicate these concerns to the Union Government, the JAC will undertake coordinated efforts to disseminate the history and context of past delimitation exercises, as well as the consequences of the proposed delimitation, among the citizens of their represented states through a public opinion mobilisation strategy.

(Edited by Sumavarsha).

Follow us