Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday voiced strong reservations over a reported proposal by the Modi government to expand the Lok Sabha by 50 per cent, cautioning that the move could widen regional disparities and disadvantage several states, particularly in the South.
In a post on X, Ramesh accused the government of attempting to “bulldoze” legislation that would increase the total number of seats in the Lok Sabha while proportionately raising allocations for each state. He argued that presenting a uniform 50 per cent increase as equitable is misleading.
“The argument that a 50% increase in seats across the board is equitable is deceptive. Proportions may not change for the present, but there are deeper implications that cannot be wished away,” he said.
Elaborating on the potential impact, Ramesh pointed to disparities in absolute gains between states. “Currently, Uttar Pradesh has 80 seats and Tamil Nadu has 39. With the proposed Bill, UP’s strength will rise to 120, while Tamil Nadu will increase to, at best, 59,” he said.
He added that while Kerala could see its representation rise from 20 to 30 seats and Bihar from 40 to 60, the broader pattern remains uneven. “The southern states will gain 66 seats, while the northern states will gain 200 seats,” he noted.
Ramesh warned that such an expansion could increase the gap in representation, putting southern states at a disadvantage in national decision-making. He also flagged concerns for smaller states in the Northeast and western regions, suggesting their influence in Parliament could be diluted.
Taking aim at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Ramesh alleged that the proposal is being advanced without adequate consultation. “Mr. Modi is unilaterally preparing a law that will disadvantage smaller states in the South, Northeast, and West,” he said.
He further indicated that resistance to the proposal may build as more details come into the public domain, noting that the Chief Minister of Telangana has already raised concerns. “Others may very well follow as this proposal becomes officially public,” he added.
The debate over expanding the Lok Sabha is closely linked to delimitation, the process of redrawing constituency boundaries and allocating seats based on population.
India has kept the distribution of seats among states frozen since the 1970s to incentivise population control, and any move to revise it is expected to spark a broader political debate over balancing representation with federal equity.