The Lok Sabha: composition, seats and term

Detail

1. What the Lok Sabha is

• Lok Sabha (House of the People): the lower House of Parliament. The people elect its members directly.
• Maximum size under Art. 81: 550 elected members:
• up to 530 from the states

• up to 20 from the Union territories (UTs)

• Today's strength: 543 seats. Each seat is a single-member territorial constituency, meaning one area elects one member.

• Constituencies are meant to have roughly equal populations.
• Voting is by universal adult suffrage: every citizen aged 18 or above can vote, whatever their caste, sex, religion or wealth.

• The method is first-past-the-post (FPTP): the candidate with the most votes wins, even without a majority. The electoral system is covered in elections-electoral-system.

• The Class 8 figure of "maximum 550" is correct for today.

• The 18th Lok Sabha was formed after the 2024 general election.

2. Anglo-Indian nominated seats: why older books say 552

• Anglo-Indian: a person of European descent on the father's side who lives in India. At independence this was a small community, so it was given seats by nomination (chosen, not elected).
• Art. 331: the President could nominate up to 2 Anglo-Indians to the Lok Sabha if the community was not adequately represented.
• Art. 333: a Governor could nominate 1 Anglo-Indian to the state Legislative Assembly.
• This is where the old figure comes from: 550 elected + 2 nominated = 552.
• 104th Amendment, 2019:
• It ended Anglo-Indian nominations to the Lok Sabha and to state assemblies from 25 January 2020.
• It extended SC/ST seat reservation in the Lok Sabha and assemblies by 10 years, to 25 January 2030 (Art. 334).
• Without the amendment, these reservations would have ended on 25 January 2020, 70 years after the Constitution began [4].
• It was introduced as the Constitution (126th Amendment) Bill, 2019. The Lok Sabha passed it on 10 December 2019 and the Rajya Sabha on 12 December 2019 [4].
• Exam trap: the Bill number (126th) is different from the Act number (104th).

3. The seat freeze and delimitation

• Delimitation: fixing the number of seats for each state and drawing the boundary of each constituency according to population. It is done by an independent Delimitation Commission under a Delimitation Act. Courts cannot question its orders.
• Art. 82: after every census, seats and boundaries are to be readjusted. Several amendments have stopped this from happening:

Amendment	Year	What it did
42nd	1976	Froze each state's share of seats on the 1971 census until 2000 [2]
84th	2001	Extended the freeze until the first census after 2026 [2]
87th	2003	Allowed boundaries to be redrawn on the 2001 census, with state totals unchanged

• Why freeze? States that controlled population growth, such as Tamil Nadu and Kerala, would otherwise lose seats to faster-growing states. Freezing seats removed that penalty for family planning.
• The 2008 delimitation:
• It worked under the Delimitation Act, 2002.
• Boundaries were redrawn on the 2001 census. The total stayed 543 [5].
• SC seats rose from 79 to 84 and ST seats from 41 to 47 (Art. 330) [5].
• The state-wise split is set out in the Representation of the People Act, 1950, as amended in 2008 [5].

4. The next census and the north–south question

• Census 2027:
• It runs in two phases and, for the first time since independence, it will count caste [6].
• Reference date: 00:00 hours, 1 March 2027.
• For Ladakh and the snow-bound areas of J&K, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, the reference date is 1 October 2026 [6].

• It is the "first census after 2026", so once it is published the 84th Amendment's freeze can end.

• The fear of losing seats: if seats were shared out by the 2011 census with the total kept at 543 [2]:

• Uttar Pradesh would go from 80 to 89 (+9), Bihar from 40 to 46 (+6) and Rajasthan from 25 to 30 (+5).

• Tamil Nadu would go from 39 to 32 (−7), Kerala from 20 to 15 (−5) and Andhra Pradesh from 42 to 38 (−4).

• This is the debate behind the Class 11 discussion question on whether the number of seats should go up.

• The 2026 attempt to change this:
• Three Bills were introduced on 16 April 2026: the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, the Delimitation Bill and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill [2][3].
• The 131st Amendment Bill proposed to [2][3]:
  • raise the Lok Sabha's maximum from 550 to 850 (states 815, UTs 35)
  • base delimitation on the 2011 census
  • let Parliament choose by ordinary law which census to use and when
• Outcome: the 131st Amendment Bill was voted down in the Lok Sabha in the 16–18 April 2026 sitting [3].
• The other two Bills depended on it, so they became infructuous (pointless) and were not taken up [3].
• The 1971 census therefore still decides each state's share of seats until the delimitation after Census 2027.

5. Reservation for women: the 106th Amendment, 2023

• It is also called the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023. It was introduced as the 128th Amendment Bill.
• Art. 330A: as nearly as possible, one-third of the seats filled by direct election to the Lok Sabha are reserved for women [2].

• Women's reservation also applies inside the SC and ST seats. One-third of those seats go to SC or ST women.

• Art. 334A (start and duration):

• Reservation begins only after the delimitation that follows the first census after the 2023 Act [2]. That census is Census 2027.
• It lasts 15 years, and Parliament can extend it by law.

• Reserved seats rotate after each later delimitation.

• When it will actually start:

• Census 2027 → census data published → Delimitation Commission redraws seats → women's quota begins.
• The 2026 plan to start women's reservation earlier, on a 2011-based delimitation, failed along with the 131st Amendment Bill [3].

6. Term, extension and dissolution

• Term (Art. 83(2)): five years from the date of its first meeting. When five years end, the House is automatically dissolved.
• Rajya Sabha contrast (Art. 83(1)): the Rajya Sabha is a permanent House and is never dissolved.
• Extension during a national emergency (an emergency declared under Art. 352 for war, external aggression or armed rebellion):
• Parliament can extend the Lok Sabha's term by law.
• Each extension can be for one year at a time.

• It cannot continue beyond six months after the emergency ends.

• The Emergency years:

• The 5th Lok Sabha was elected in 1971. Its term was extended during the 1975–77 Emergency, and it was dissolved in early 1977.
• The 42nd Amendment (1976) made the term six years.

• The 44th Amendment (1978) brought back five years.

• Early dissolution (Art. 85(2)(b)): the President dissolves the House before its term ends:

• when no party or coalition can form a government, or

• on the advice of the Prime Minister.

• The procedure for dissolution and what happens to pending bills are covered in parliamentary-procedure.

7. Why the Lok Sabha controls the government

• Art. 75(3): the Council of Ministers is collectively responsible to the Lok Sabha alone. This means all ministers stand or fall together, and they stay in office only while the Lok Sabha supports them.
• If the Lok Sabha passes a no-confidence motion (a vote saying the House no longer supports the government), the whole ministry must resign.
• The Rajya Sabha cannot remove the government.

Prelims Hooks

• Art. 81 sets the maximum at 550 elected members: 530 from states and 20 from UTs. Today there are 543 seats.
• 104th Amendment, 2019 (Bill no. 126) ended Anglo-Indian nominations under Arts. 331/333 and extended SC/ST reservation to 25 January 2030 (Art. 334).
• Freeze based on the 1971 census: the 42nd (1976) froze it until 2000 and the 84th (2001) extended it to the first census after 2026. The 87th (2003) allowed boundaries to be redrawn on the 2001 census.
• The 2008 delimitation gave 84 SC seats (up from 79) and 47 ST seats (up from 41) under Art. 330.
• 106th Amendment, 2023: Art. 330A gives one-third of Lok Sabha seats to women, including within SC/ST seats. Art. 334A sets 15 years, starting after the post-census delimitation.
• Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026 proposed an 850-seat Lok Sabha and a 2011-census delimitation. It was defeated in the Lok Sabha (April 2026).
• Census 2027 reference date: 1 March 2027. For snow-bound areas it is 1 October 2026.
• Art. 83(2): five years from the first meeting, not from the date of the election. Emergency extensions are one year at a time and end no later than six months after the emergency ends.
• Trap: the 42nd Amendment made the term 6 years and the 44th restored 5.
• Art. 75(3): ministers are collectively responsible to the Lok Sabha only.

Mains Points

• Population versus federal fairness:
• "One person, one vote, one value" calls for seats to follow population.
• Following population strictly would cut seats for southern states that controlled population growth. Using 2011 data, Tamil Nadu would lose 7 and Kerala 5.

• Possible fixes: a bigger House so no state loses seats (the failed 850-seat plan), a weighted formula, or a stronger Rajya Sabha.

• Women's reservation delayed:

• Art. 334A ties the quota to the census and delimitation, so its start is uncertain.

• The 2026 Bill tried to separate the two and failed. Critics call this "reservation deferred". Supporters say fresh data is needed so that reserved seats are fair.

• Size and quality of representation:

• Each MP now represents about 25 lakh people on average.

• A larger House would bring MPs closer to voters, but it could weaken debate in an already crowded schedule.

• Term safeguards:

• The 1976 extension and the 42nd Amendment's six-year term show how a fixed term can be stretched during an emergency.
• The 44th Amendment restored five years, which shows that elections are a key check on government.