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THE CONSTITUTION, MADE UNDERSTANDABLE

Article 82
Readjustment after each census

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Source edition: as on 1 May 2026. Omitted and struck-down reference entries remain labelled. Open the authoritative PDF ↗

Article 82 / Part V

Readjustment after each census

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Plain languageOfficial textPurpose & sources
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THE PLAIN-LANGUAGE GUIDE

What does this mean?

Following a census, the allocation of Lok Sabha seats and constituency boundaries are to be readjusted by the authority and manner Parliament provides. The freeze and timing provisos must be read before assuming an immediate redistribution.

The Union's President, ministers, Parliament, Supreme Court and Comptroller and Auditor-General.

PURPOSE & CONTEXT

Why is this provision here?

Demographic changes require an orderly readjustment framework, qualified by the constitutional freezes and transition rules.

Historical evidence

This Article number belongs to the original constitutional framework, but its present wording may include later amendments or substitutions. A provision-specific original Assembly debate has not been verified here. The explanation of function above is editorial inference from the text, not an attributed single motive of the framers. The original draft-making archive is a research resource, not proof of a particular historical reason. The later amendment records linked below document changes affecting this Article; their Bill statements explain those proposals, not necessarily every original clause or the complete present legal outcome.

The explanation of purpose is an editorial reading of the provision. A drafting motive is attributed only where a linked historical source supports it.

Limits, exceptions & reading carefully

Educational summary of the linked source text. Exceptions, provisos, implementing laws and applicable judgments must be read before applying it to a real case.

Amendment references
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Read the official constitutional text
82. Readjustment after each census.—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.]]
Source-page notes · may concern neighbouring Articles

5. Ins. by the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976, s. 16 (w.e.f. 3-1-1977).

6. Subs. by the Constitution (Eighty-fourth Amendment) Act, 2001, s. 4, for "2000" (w.e.f. 21-2-2002).

7. Subs. by s.4, ibid., for certain words (w.e.f. 21-2-2002).

1. Subs. by the Constitution (Eighty-seventh Amendment) Act, 2003, s. 3, for "1991" (w.e.f. 22-6-2003).

Extracted from the Legislative Department’s May 2026 edition. Page footnotes may refer to neighbouring provisions; check their markers in the PDF. Inclusion in this edition does not by itself establish commencement or judicial effect.