India once again stands on the brink of a constitutional challenge that could test the resilience of its federal structure. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government has signalled its intention to revive delimitation in the upcoming session of Parliament.
While the redrawing of parliamentary constituencies based on the latest census is constitutionally mandated, it is also politically explosive. Delimitation would significantly increase the representation of the populous northern states in the Lok Sabha relative to the southern, western, and smaller states.
To address these concerns and preserve national unity, India should look to an institution specifically created to protect regional interests: the Rajya Sabha.
Delimitation and Rajya Sabha
The government’s first attempt to advance delimitation failed just two months ago, despite being linked to the broadly popular issue of women’s reservation. The proposal sought to implement a higher quota for women after constituencies were redrawn.
Opposition parties united against the bill, arguing that it would disproportionately benefit the populous Hindi heartland—where the BJP enjoys strong support—while penalising states that had successfully controlled population growth and invested heavily in public welfare.
At its core, the delimitation debate pits two legitimate principles against each other: democratic representation and federal balance.
Since 1976, Lok Sabha seats have effectively remained frozen on the basis of the 1971 Census. Ending this freeze without additional safeguards would create a zero-sum contest. Northern states would justifiably demand more seats in line with their population growth, consistent with the democratic principle of "one person, one vote."
Meanwhile, southern and western states would see their political influence diminish despite contributing disproportionately to the national economy and achieving federal population-control objectives. Smaller eastern and northeastern states could find themselves further marginalised.
This imbalance cannot be resolved within the Lok Sabha alone. Even if Parliament expands the total number of seats, a population-based distribution would still reduce the relative influence of states that have performed well on development and demographic indicators.
The framers of the Constitution envisioned the Rajya Sabha as the Council of States. In practice, however, its composition closely mirrors the population-based logic of the Lok Sabha. Under the Fourth Schedule, states are allocated Rajya Sabha seats largely in proportion to their population. As a result, larger states dominate both houses of Parliament, preventing the upper house from fulfilling its intended federal role.
Demographic Realities over Political Needs
India should therefore accompany delimitation with a constitutional reform that gives the Rajya Sabha a more balanced system of state representation.
Inspiration can be drawn from federal systems elsewhere. In the United States, every state receives equal representation in the Senate regardless of population. Germany's Bundesrat follows a tiered model that limits the dominance of larger states while still recognising demographic differences. India need not replicate either model exactly, but it can adapt their underlying principle: ensuring that states have meaningful institutional protection independent of population size.
Under such an arrangement, the Lok Sabha could reflect demographic realities more accurately, satisfying the democratic demands of the north. At the same time, a reformed Rajya Sabha—with equalised or carefully weighted state representation—would protect the interests of smaller and less populous states.
Implementing this reform would require a multi-step constitutional strategy. First, Parliament should decouple Rajya Sabha representation from strict population-based formulas. One possible approach would be to give every state equal representation. Another way is to assign every state a baseline number of seats, supplemented by additional seats based on a population-based slab subject to an upper cap. Such a system would prevent any single state from dominating the chamber.
Second, the Rajya Sabha's powers must be strengthened. At present, Money Bills can effectively bypass the upper house. In a post-delimitation environment, where fiscal transfers and revenue-sharing arrangements are likely to become even more contentious, the Rajya Sabha should be granted either joint authority or mandatory review powers over key financial legislation affecting Centre-State relations.
Together, these reforms would create a grand federal bargain. The north would receive representation in the Lok Sabha proportional to its population, while the south, west, and smaller states would gain stronger institutional safeguards in the Rajya Sabha.
Such an approach is not merely politically pragmatic; it is a matter of fairness. States should not be penalised for successfully advancing national goals such as population stabilisation, healthcare, and social development. Doing so would send the troubling message that effective governance leads to political marginalisation.
The Last Check on Majoritarianism
A stronger Rajya Sabha would also help shift the national conversation away from a divisive North-versus-South framework. Instead of becoming a regional contest, the debate would be transformed into a question of institutional balance of powers. A repurposed Rajya Sabha could also then be better used for checks on the majoritarianism of the Lok Sabha and authoritarianism of the executive branch.
Delimitation cannot be postponed indefinitely without weakening the democratic principle of equal representation. Yet implementing it solely through the Lok Sabha risks undermining the federal trust that binds the Indian Union together. By transforming the Rajya Sabha into a true chamber of states, India can reconcile democracy with federalism—honoring population-based representation while preserving regional balance.
The Council of States must finally become what its name promises: a durable shield for India's diverse regions and a cornerstone of national unity.
(Bhanu Dhamija is Founder and CEO of the Divya Himachal Group and author of ‘Why India Needs the Presidential System’. He can be reached @BhanuDhamija. This is a personal blog, and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)