Article 82

Delimitation and Census Readjustment of Parliamentary Seats

Official heading: “Readjustment after each census”

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Source edition: The Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2026)
Source locator: Part V, Article 82, printed pages 38–39
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Last human legal review: Not yet reviewed

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1. In One Sentence

Article 82 requires readjustment of parliamentary seats and constituency boundaries following each decennial census by a statutory Delimitation Commission, subject to the constitutional freeze until post-2026.

2. What It Means in Everyday Language

Article 82 provides for periodic delimitation: following the completion of each decennial census, the allocation of seats in the Lok Sabha to the States and the division of each State into territorial constituencies must be readjusted by an authority determined by Parliament (the Delimitation Commission).

The first proviso ensures legislative stability: any readjustment made does not affect the representation of the sitting House of the People until its dissolution.

The third proviso embodies the demographic freeze: to prevent penalizing States that successfully implemented population control policies, the 42nd Amendment (1976) and 84th Amendment (2001) froze the inter-state seat allocation on 1971 figures, and the 87th Amendment (2003) allowed internal constituency boundary rationalization based on the 2001 census, both until the first census after 2026.

3. Practical Illustrative Example

Everyday Scenario:

A national census is completed, revealing significant population shifts between urban and rural areas within a State.

Core takeaway: Under Article 82, Parliament establishes a Delimitation Commission to redraw internal constituency boundaries so that each MP represents an equal number of voters.

Illustrative Notice: The total number of Lok Sabha seats allotted to each State remains frozen based on the 1971 census until the first census conducted after 2026.

4. Important Limits, Qualifications & Exceptions

Article 82 mandates periodic boundary redrawing while preserving inter-state seat stability.

Post-census readjustment carried out by an independent statutory Delimitation Commission.
Delayed effect: New boundaries do not alter the sitting Lok Sabha until its dissolution.
Total seat freeze: Inter-state allocation locked to 1971 census figures until post-2026.
Internal rationalization: Intra-state constituency redrawing permitted on 2001 census data.

5. Operative Constitutional Text

Upon the completion of each census, the allocation of seats in the House of the People to the States and the division of each State into territorial constituencies shall be readjusted by such authority and in such manner as Parliament may by law determine: Provided that such readjustment shall not affect representation in the House of the People until the dissolution of the then existing House: Provided further that such readjustment shall take effect from such date as the President may, by order, specify and until such readjustment takes effect, any election to the House may be held on the basis of the territorial constituencies existing before such readjustment: Provided also that until the relevant figures for the first census taken after the year 2026 have been published, it shall not be necessary to readjust,— (i) the allocation of seats in the House of the People to the States as readjusted on the basis of the 1971 census; and (ii) the division of each State into territorial constituencies as may be readjusted on the basis of the 2001 census, under this article.

Transcription for reference; compare with the linked official editionNot yet verified by a human legal reviewer

6. Sources & Historical Assembly Deliberations

Assembly quotations are withheld until wording, dates, and attribution have been checked against the primary record.

Sources & Citation Metadata

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Constitutional TextThe Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2026)Cited PDF page
Government of India (Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice) • Part V, Article 82, printed pages 38–39 • Human source-link check pending
Primary PDF accessed and transcribed with AI assistance on 14 October 2026. Formatting and amendment annotation markers are omitted; operative wording is retained. This is not human legal review. Later amendments and commencement notifications have not been comprehensively checked.

Human legal review is pending; compare the text with the cited editionNon-partisan educational resource