Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has written to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, sharing his “deep concerns” that the proposed Delimitation Bill 2026 would “result in a systemic shift in political power” between states. He called on southern and smaller states to launch a coordinated effort to protect their interests.
In the letter dated April 14, Revanth said, “Under the present proposal, our states are being structurally disadvantaged and politically unempowered. The consequence of a pro rata model is not merely a statistical adjustment, it will result in a systemic shift in political power.”
The Union government plans to introduce the Delimitation Bill and the Constitution (131st) Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha on April 16, to reconfigure the states’ and Union Territories’ share of seats in the Lower House. The Union government has said that these bills are being introduced to expedite the implementation of the Women’s Reservation Bill.
The Delimitation Bill proposes to raise the number of Lok Sabha seats to 850, with 815 for the states and the rest for Union Territories. The seats would be divided between the states and UTs on a pro-rata basis—meaning that a state or UT’s share would increase in proportion to its current share in the Lok Sabha.
The Opposition, however, has alleged that the Union government is using women’s reservation as an excuse to change the balance of power in Parliament in favour of north Indian states. They allege that delimitation, whether it is done on the basis of states’ population—as was previously proposed—or through the new pro-rata method, would still disadvantage south Indian states and reduce their representation in the Lok Sabha.
Revanth Reddy said in his letter to Stalin that the pro-rata method is “equally bad for all of us in south India, and we must stand united in opposing increase in Lok Sabha seats using the pro-rata basis also.” He said that three different issues were being “deliberately mixed to cause confusion in the public mind”—women’s reservation, national delimitation, and increase in seats in the Lok Sabha. Revanth said he supported the Women’s Reservation Bill but was against linking it to the increase in the number of seats.
He drew Stalin’s attention to how the pro-rata model “changes political power gap between states” and said that while all states may see an increase in the absolute number of seats, the relative gap between states would widen significantly.
Giving an example, Revanth said that Tamil Nadu and Puducherry currently held 40 Lok Sabha seats, which was 40 seats less than Uttar Pradesh’s 80. If the Lok Sabha seats were increased to 850, he said that Tamil Nadu and Puducheery’s share might increase to about 60 seats, but UP’s could rise to about 120 seats. This would increase the gap between Tamil Nadu and Puducherry and Uttar Pradesh from 40 to 60, “thereby structurally widening the imbalance in representation.”
Revanth proposed a “constructive alternative” which would balance representation with financial contribution. He proposed that half the seats could be added on a pro-rata basis, while the rest could be divided on the basis of GSDP and other performance criteria.
An alternative acceptable to everyone could be arrived at after consultation, he added.
Stalin briefly responded to Revanth, saying, “Our unity is to protect our state rights and secure a just and equitable future for our generations to come. The South will stand together, speak with one voice, and uphold the true spirit of federalism.”
In his letter, Revanth also referred to the meeting of the Joint Action Committee called last year by Stalin against the delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies. The meeting saw participation from the top elected leadership of all five southern states, besides representatives from Odisha and Punjab.
The meeting discussed at length the implications of the proposed delimitation on southern and other smaller states.
The Union government’s delimitation proposal had caused much concern among southern states, which feared their representation in Parliament would reduce if delimitation was done on the basis of population. The current composition of the Lok Sabha has been decided on the basis of the 1971 Census, and within each state on the basis of the 2001 Census.