Delimitation is the territorial division of constituency for the purpose of election of representatives to uphold principle of fair representation and one person one vote.

Population based delimitation creating federal tension: → Newer role of central agencies in delimitation → Not giving adequate scope for state government to voice its opinion in delimitation. → Unbalanced population growth and those who have more population gain more seats by UP, Bihar → These states which have been successful in its population limiting measures by an act disadvantage i.e. Southern states like Kerala, Karnataka → This creates federal tension in terms of allocation of seats in Lok Sabha. → The 86th amendment Act enacted to freeze the allocation based on 1991 census But with rising population, need to correct the inadequate representation. Supreme Court has declared free and fair elections as an essential component of basic structure declare. This 84 has time and again played an important role in strengthening the hands of election commission (Article 324) to ensure free and fair elections in country. Role of Supreme Court: → Declaring free and fair elections as part of basic structure declare → Lily Thomas case → declared that any legislator carrying for an offence implicating punishment of more than 2 years would be immediately disqualified. → Recent SC judgment → Election Commission would be appointed on the recommendation of a committee consisting of PM, leader of opposition & lok sabha and chief judge of india → SC directive to political parties to declare the criminal antecedents of their candidates on their website and newspaper → to check criminality of politics. → SC directive that political parties shall be brought under RTI act on a public authority → SC is looking at the elected bonds scheme which brings anonymity in election funding.

— Nidhi Goyal · AIR 91