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20 Mar 2025 : A delimitation red flag — the lessons from J&K, Assam

Editorial 2: A delimitation red flag — the lessons from J&K, Assam

Context

Another risk associated with delimitation is the communal division of electoral constituencie

 

Introduction

As discussions on the delimitation of legislative constituencies intensify, various concerns and possible solutions have been raised. One practical proposal is to maintain the current number of parliamentary seats while increasing the number of Assembly seats in states with growing populations. This approach is more democratic, as Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) serve as the primary representatives for their constituents, addressing local issues, whereas Members of Parliament (MPs) primarily focus on national policy matters.

 

Addressing Power Imbalance and Strengthening Zonal Councils

 

Concern

Proposed Solution

Southern states fear an imbalance of power due to delimitation

Redistribute Rajya Sabha seats equally among the five geographic zones (Northern, Central, Eastern, Western, and Southern).

Zonal Councils are inactive

Most zonal councils have not met since 2023, except the Western Zonal Council (Feb 2025). The Southern Zonal Council last met in 2022, despite a planned meeting in Chennai (Jan 2025).

Criticism of Zonal Councils

Some argue that zonal councils were meant to resolve inter-state disputes, while the Inter-State Council was intended for both State-State and Centre-State relations.

Actual Role of Zonal Councils

In practice, they address a variety of issues, from Aadhaar to governance, making their role more significant.

Need for Structural Changes

- Zonal Councils should be independent of the Home Ministry to function effectively.  
- They should coordinate with the Inter-State Council, which has been inactive since 2016 and needs greater authority and permanence.

 

The case of Jammu and Kashmir

  • Recent State-Level Delimitations: Two state-level delimitations—Jammu & Kashmir (2022) and Assam (2023)—highlight concerns for the 2026 delimitation process.
  • Criticism of J&K Delimitation: Apart from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), all political parties in Jammu & Kashmir opposed the exercise due to several issues.
  • Disproportionate Seat Allocation: Jammu gained six new seats, while the Valley received only one, creating an imbalance in vote weight (Jammu votes carried 1.2 times the weight of Valley votes).
  • Illogical Constituency Boundaries: Constituencies were redrawn without administrative or geographic logic, such as merging Poonch and Rajouri (Jammu region) with Anantnag (Valley region) despite their geographical separation.
  • Communal Seat Distribution: All six newly created constituencies—Jasrota, Ramgarh, Ramnagar, Vaishno Devi, Padder-Nagseni, and Doda West—were Hindu-majority.
  • Demographic Manipulation: Muslim-majority Kishtwar was altered into a Hindu-majority constituency by merging parts of the former Inderwal constituency.
  • Unequal Electorate Sizes: Hindu-majority constituencies such as Vaishno Devi, Padder, and Doda West had smaller electorates (around 50,000 voters), while Muslim-majority constituencies like Dooru (1.92 lakh) and Surankote (1.77 lakh) had significantly larger voter populations.
  • Warning for 2026 Delimitation: These flaws and communal biases in the J&K delimitation raise concerns about fairness, representation, and national unity in the upcoming 2026 exercise.

 

In Assam

Issue

Details

District Mergers

Assam cabinet merged 4 districts back into their original ones, reducing total districts from 35 to 31.

Frozen Assembly Seats

Number of Assembly seats remained unchanged despite redistricting.

Loss of Muslim-Majority Seats

10 Muslim-majority seats were removed, including South Salmara, Barpeta (2), Darrang, Nagaon, Dibrugarh, Sibsagar, Jorhat, Hailakandi, Karimganj.

Increase in Hindu & Tribal Seats

Hindu and tribal seats increased, altering demographic balance.

Unequal Constituency Sizes

Constituencies were drawn with vastly different population sizes, impacting fair representation.

Pattern of Bias

Like Jammu & Kashmir, delimitation favored certain communities while reducing minority influence.

Warning for 2026

Risk of similar tactics being used again to manipulate electoral representation.

Danger of polarisation

Issue

Details

Opposition’s Inaction

Despite its importance, the Opposition has not actively addressed the risks of communal delimitation.

Minority Populations in Opposition States

Many Opposition-ruled States have large minority populations, mostly Muslim.

Past Secular Voting Trends

In Bengal and Tamil Nadu, regional identity has outweighed communal identity, with major parties like TMC and DMK securing votes across religious groups.

Risk of Polarization

No guarantee that non-communal voting will continue; communal demarcation could polarize voters even in the South.

Pattern from Jammu & Assam

Delimitation changes in these States helped BJP consolidate votes through communal divisions.

Spreading of Border-State Policies

Previously, draconian laws and minority repression were mainly used in border States, but now these policies are expanding nationwide.

 

Conclusion

The imbalance in power between large northern states and the rest, resulting from population-based delimitation, is a serious concern. However, an equally pressing issue is the communal division of electoral constituencies, which poses another threat to national unity. Population-based delimitation could further reduce the influence of more developed states, deepening the divide between them and less developed regions. At the same time, communal delimitation risks dividing people along religious lines, disrupting social harmony. Together, these two factors create a significant challenge to the foundations of India's pluralistic federation and must be prevented.