President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday approved the final delimitation order issued by the Election Commission of India with respect to the parliamentary and Assembly constituencies in Assam.

On August 11, the ECI had published the final delimitation order for the 14 parliamentary and 14 Assembly constituencies in Assam. On Wednesday, the Ministry of Law and Justice published an order by the President stating that the ECI’s order took effect from Wednesday.

On December 27, 2022, the ECI had announced a plan to carry out delimitation of the parliamentary and Assembly constituencies in Assam based on the 2001 Census after years of deferral. The last time the exercise was carried out in Assam was in 1976. It was deferred in Assam multiple times because political parties opposed it citing the ongoing updation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC). The delimitation order continues to be contested by opposition parties and different community organisations based on multiple issues, including the reduction of seats where minority voters will play a decisive role, lack of geographical contiguity and the reduction of seats in the Bengali dominated Barak Valley.

Meanwhile, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Sarma welcomed the development on social media. “A significant milestone has been achieved in the history of Assam. Jai Maa Bharati, Jai Maa Asom,” Sarma announced in a post on X,

earlier known as Twitter.

Meanwhile Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi wrote on X that the speed with which Election Commission has rushed through despite serious questions raised by the Supreme Court in the ongoing case is another example of BJP’s authoritarianism.”