Assuring the nation amid opposition's charge that delimitation would lead to a 'north-south' divide, Union Law and Justice Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said on Thursday that seats of all states will be increased by 50 per cent, adding that Lok Sabha's tally would rise to 815 and women's quota in this would be 272 seats.
Meghwal, who tabled the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill and the Delimitation Bill, 2026 in the Lok Sabha, said neither any state nor men will suffer after the Women's Reservation Act or the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam is implemented.
Also, the law minister said there will be quota for women belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) within women quota in the Lok Sabha and assemblies. "The women’s reservation bill was passed in 2023, providing for implementing its provisions based on census after 2026 and delimitation," Meghwal said.
"There will be an equal, 50 per cent increase in the strength of Lok Sabha members, and this will translate to 815 seats, of which 272 will be reserved for women, which comes to one-third of the strength of the House," he said, assuring states that there will be no loss to anyone and their strength will be retained.
Meghwal's assurance came after the opposition alleged that southern states will lose their share in the delimitation, which further create a 'north-south divide'. The opposition, led by the Congress, alleged that southern states will suffer the most due to delimitation, while asserting that they are not against women's reservation.
Leading the charge for the Congress was party leader KC Venugopal who said the proposed changes in the women's reservation law should have been incorporated when it was passed in 2023. Joining him, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said the government was hurrying by bringing these bills and pointed out that a census must be conducted before.
Countering him, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the Census 2027 is already on, while hitting out at the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister that reservation based on religion is 'unconstitutional'. Later, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla intervened after which the discussion continued in the House.
