SC turns down plea seeking delimitation for Andhra Pradesh, Telangana

Last month, the Ministry of Home Affairs said that the concerns of southern states about the delimitation exercise will be taken care of and discussed with all concerned at an appropriate time

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain a plea seeking a delimitation of assembly constituencies in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, stating that the Constitution does not permit such an exercise before the first census after 2026, reported news agency PTI.

 

A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh stated that such an action will open floodgates for all states to approach “seeking parity”, reported Bar and Bench.

 

“We hold that constitutional mandate under 170(3) serves as a bar. Demand for the delimitation is contrary to the same and thus fails.... Thus, we find no merit that the exclusion of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana from the impugned delimitation notification is arbitrary or violative of the constitution,” the top court said, while rejecting the petition filed by K Purushottam Reddy.

 

 

What’s the case? 

Reddy had moved the apex court, arguing that excluding Andhra Pradesh and Telangana from the delimitation carried out in the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir in 2022 was discriminatory. He contended that the move created an unreasonable classification between the UT and the two states. He further sought directions to the Centre to implement Section 26 of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act of 2014 to carry out the delimitation exercise in the two states.

 

He also claimed that the exclusion was in violation of the doctrine of legitimate expectations, Bar and Bench reported. The court, however, rejected the claim, stating that provisions governing delimitation in UTs differ from those applicable to states.

 

Court stresses constitutional supremacy 

“Doctrine of legitimate expectation is a well settled principle though it does not lead to any legal right and it cannot override any express provision of law and it needs to be reasonable and in consonance with the statute. Expectation under the Andhra Pradesh Act cannot be seen in isolation as it is subject to Article 170 of the Constitution,” the SC observed, as quoted by Bar and Bench.

 

Meanwhile, last month, the Centre announced dates for Census-2027, which will be carried out in two phases. The last census was conducted in 2011. Soon after the announcement, the Ministry of Home Affairs said that the concerns of southern states about the delimitation exercise will be taken care of and discussed with all concerned at an appropriate time.