States that stabilised population will not lose Lok Sabha seats in delimitation: PM Modi

States that have stabilised their populations will not lose their Lok Sabha seats during delimitation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at an election rally in Kerala on Saturday.

All states will benefit from a proposed increase in the size of the Lower House of Parliament, he said in Thiruvalla, in what are being viewed as the prime minister’s first comments about the proposed delimitation exercise.

Delimitation is the process of fixing the boundaries of electoral constituencies. Article 82 of the Constitution states that after every census is completed, the allocation of Lok Sabha seats to each state must be adjusted based on changes in its population.

The composition of the current Lok Sabha is based on the 1971 census. According to the 84th Amendment Act of 2001, the constituency boundaries were frozen until the first census after 2026.

The population census, which began on Wednesday, is expected to conclude in 2027.

Southern states, which have a slower population growth rate, have repeatedly expressed concern that population-based delimitation could give an undue advantage to northern and central states in the Lok Sabha.

On Saturday, Modi said that Kerala and Tamil Nadu, among other states, had done good work to control their population. “Some people are spreading lies, claiming that their parliamentary seat allocation will be reduced, because their...

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