Electoral Design And Federal Representation: Why Equal State Seats Are Incompatible With The Current Rajya Sabha Framework
- IJLLR Journal
- 5 days ago
- 1 min read
Suhail Farooq Khan, Assistant Professor Law, KCEF Law College, Pulwama, J&K
ABSTRACT
The impending census and delimitation exercise has renewed constitutional debate on representation and federal balance in India. While population- based reallocation of seats in the House of the People advances democratic equality, it risks disproportionately disadvantageous to the states that have experienced slower population growth and risk loss of seats based on population. This paper examines whether the Council of States can function as an institutional counterweight to such demographic redistribution.
Through an analysis of its composition, indirect electoral mechanisms, and voting thresholds, the paper argues that India’s rejection of equal State representation in the upper chamber reflects a deliberate constitutional choice balancing demographic proportionality with federal accommodation. Doctrinal analysis and failings of the Tenth Schedule in curbing cross-voting further demonstrate that any proposal for equal representation for States in Council of States would introduce significant operational distortions without resolving enforcement weaknesses.
Keywords: Bicameral system, Council of States, Delimitation, Federalism, Voter-threshold, Constitutional design, Anti-Defection.
