New Delhi, Apr 16 — Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal on Thursday said the number of Lok Sabha seats will be increased by 50 per cent to 815, with 272 seats reserved for women, as Parliament reconvened for a special sitting to take up key delimitation and reservation bills.
“Seats of all states will be increased by 50%. The total Lok Sabha seats would be 815, and 272 will be reserved for women,” Meghwal said, describing it as a formula to ensure that no state is disadvantaged.
The proposed expansion is part of a legislative package that includes the Delimitation Bill, 2026, the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-first Amendment) Bill, 2026, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026. The measures seek to redraw constituencies and raise the strength of the Lower House from the current 543 seats to 815, paving the way for implementation of the 33 per cent women’s quota from the 2029 general elections.
The government has indicated that the delimitation exercise will be based on the latest available census data, effectively the 2011 Census, with seat increases distributed proportionally across states.
The Opposition has raised objections to the proposed framework. Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi called for delimitation and women’s reservation to be linked to the ongoing census, including caste enumeration.
Opposition parties have also argued that relying on the 2011 Census could disadvantage southern states, which have seen slower population growth compared to others. The government, however, has maintained that the proposed increase in seats will be proportional and will not penalise any region.