Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) working president and Baramati MP Supriya Sule on Saturday, 14 November signalled conditional support for the Centre's proposed delimitation exercise, stating her party is open to backing the Delimitation Bill — but only if it guarantees a uniform 50 per cent increase in Lok Sabha seats across all states and is coupled with women's reservation. The remarks, made at a press conference in Mumbai, come ahead of Parliament's upcoming session and are being read as a potential breakthrough for the Modi government, which requires a two-thirds majority to pass the constitutional amendment.

What NCP (SP) Is Demanding

Sule outlined two non-negotiable conditions: first, the seat increase must be proportionally equal across every state — not skewed toward any particular region; second, the delimitation process cannot proceed without simultaneously implementing women's reservation. She credited Union Home Minister Amit Shah with originally floating the uniform 50 per cent seat-hike formula. “If all states are getting seats in an equal and uniform proportion, then there is no objection to considering it,” she said, adding that the formula is acceptable to the NCP (SP) “in principle” if it serves the broader national interest.

The Demographic Case for Delimitation

Defending the practical need to redraw constituency boundaries, Sule pointed to the explosive growth of voter rolls across the country. Her own Baramati constituency, she noted, has seen its electorate swell from roughly 10–12 lakh voters to nearly 20–22 lakh, with several other constituencies nationally reaching 25 to 40 lakh voters. She argued that the existing ₹5 crore MPLADS fund is wholly inadequate for such scale. “Representation is a service. Imagine reaching 25 to 40 lakh people; even if someone were Superman or Batman, they couldn’t reach everyone,” she remarked, making the case that smaller, redrawn constituencies are essential for effective governance and equitable local development.

Consistency with Past Positions

Sule stressed that her party’s stance is not new, noting it mirrors the position the NCP (SP) conveyed during all-party discussions held roughly three months ago. The INDIA Bloc, of which NCP (SP) is a part, had also discussed the uniform seat-hike formula previously, she said. The clarification is significant because it suggests the opposition alliance is not monolithically opposed to delimitation — only to the version that critics argue could disadvantage states that performed better on population control.

No NDA Alliance, No Merger

Despite signalling issue-based cooperation with the government on delimitation, Sule firmly dismissed speculation about her party joining the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) or merging with the rival NCP faction led by Ajit Pawar. Addressing rumours of a potential merger following the demise of her brother Ajit Pawar, she put a “full stop” to such chatter, stating that the chapter closed the day he passed away and that no merger proposals are on the table. The NCP (SP) remains firmly within the INDIA Bloc, she reaffirmed.

What Happens Next

The government’s ability to pass the constitutional amendment bill depends on assembling a two-thirds majority in Parliament — a threshold an earlier version of the bill reportedly failed to clear. Conditional support from a party like NCP (SP) could nudge other opposition constituents toward engagement, particularly if the uniform seat-distribution formula is formalised in the bill’s draft. Observers will watch whether the government incorporates the women’s reservation linkage that Sule and other opposition voices have made a prerequisite.