Amit Shah counters ‘South will lose seats’ narrative, details new projections

Amit Shah on Delimitation: Southern States to Gain Lok Sabha Seats, No Loss in Representation

April 16, 2026

New seat projections indicate gains across five southern states

Home Minister dismisses concerns of reduced representation in Lok Sabha

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday (April 16) dismissed concerns that the proposed delimitation exercise would reduce the representation of southern states in the Lok Sabha, asserting instead that their overall strength would increase.

Speaking in the Lok Sabha during a special Parliament session, Shah said,
“A narrative is being created, and confusion is being spread that these three bills, the Constitutional Amendment Bill and the two related laws on delimitation and changes in election procedures, will reduce the representation of southern states in the Lok Sabha and cause them significant loss. The bill before the House is now the property of the House.”

He emphasised that the proposed expansion of the Lok Sabha would ensure that no state loses its existing representation in absolute terms.

Highlighting the numbers, Shah said, “If we listen to the entire narrative created for the South, then out of the 543 seats created by you, 129 MPs currently sit in this House, which is approximately 23.76%. In the new House, 195 MPs will be sitting here, and their power will be 23.97%,”

Addressing concerns raised in Tamil Nadu, he added, “As for Tamil Nadu, where many people have been expressing concerns, I want to assure the people of the state that your representation will not decrease; it will increase,”

VIDEO | In Lok Sabha, Union Home Minister Amit Shah says, “A narrative is being created and confusion is being spread that these three bills, the Constitutional Amendment Bill and the two related laws on delimitation and changes in election procedures, will reduce the… pic.twitter.com/Tpqa8PaaIg
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) April 16, 2026

No changes to delimitation law framework

Shah also addressed concerns regarding possible changes to the legal framework governing delimitation, stating that the existing law remains untouched.

He said, “I would like to say to Hon’ble Member Priyanka ji (Gandhi) that we have not made any changes to the Delimitation Commission Act. Not even a comma or full stop has been altered; we have retained the existing Delimitation Commission Act in its entirety. If you are saying that manipulation happened earlier, and you are now saying that it could happen again, then I can only say this: if the Act was misused in the past, we will not do so,”

State-wise Seat Gains After Delimitation

Responding to concerns linking the proposed changes with upcoming elections, Shah clarified, “That is not correct. Let me clearly state that the Delimitation Commission’s report will come into effect only when it is accepted by Parliament and receives the approval of the President. Therefore, there is no question of it being implemented before 2029. Even the elections up to 2029 will be conducted under the existing system and existing constituencies. So there is no need for Akhilesh ji (Yadav) to be worried,”

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