Daijiworld Media Network - Panaji
Panaji, Aug 11: Although the Centre has operationalised the Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Assembly Constituencies of the State of Goa Act, 2025, the actual reservation of four Assembly constituencies for Scheduled Tribes (STs) is likely to take considerable time, with several legal and procedural steps still pending.
The statutory process involves ascertaining Goa’s ST population, delimiting Assembly constituencies and finally notifying the constituencies to be reserved. The lengthy procedure has led ST leaders to question whether the entire exercise can realistically be completed within the next three months, before the Model Code of Conduct is expected to come into force ahead of the Assembly elections due in February 2027.
“The Act is very clear. It has laid down a detailed procedure. Now, we have to see whether practically it will be possible to complete the entire process within the next three months. It all depends on the political will. Sooner the Census Commissioner is appointed, the process will be fast-tracked,” ST leader Govind Shirodkar said.
Under the Act, the first step is the appointment of a Census Commissioner, who will ascertain or estimate Goa’s ST population based on the last Census.
If the ST population has changed following amendments to the Scheduled Tribes Orders after the last Census, the Commissioner will have to estimate the revised ST population and determine its proportion to the State’s total population.
The population figures will then have to be officially notified in the Gazette of India. Once notified, the figures will be treated as final, will replace all previous population figures and cannot be challenged in any court.
Only after this process is completed can the Delimitation Commission amend the existing Delimitation Order to provide appropriate representation to STs in Goa in accordance with Articles 170 and 332 of the Constitution and the Delimitation Act.
The Commission will then have to publish its proposed amendments in the Gazette of India and the Official Gazette of Goa and publicise them through other means. It will specify a date for receiving objections and suggestions and hold one or more public sittings at locations across Goa before finalising the proposals.
After considering the objections and suggestions received from the public, the Commission will make the necessary amendments to the Delimitation Order.
“For every time, the authorities will have to grant a maximum of a 30 days time period to the public for feedback. On paper itself the procedure looks so complex but at the end, it depends on how Centre expedites it. The only good thing about this law is, no one can challenge the findings in any court of law,” another tribal leader said.
The Act gives the Delimitation Commission powers similar to those of a civil court, including the authority to summon witnesses, call for documents and requisition public records while carrying out the exercise.
Once the amended Delimitation Order is finalised, it will again have to be published in the Gazette of India and the Official Gazette of Goa.
The amendments will subsequently be laid before the Lok Sabha and the Goa Legislative Assembly. The readjustment of Assembly seats and reservation of constituencies will take effect only for elections held after publication of the amended Delimitation Order.
The Commission has also been empowered to subsequently correct inadvertent errors or update boundaries if there are changes in districts or other territorial divisions.
However, ST leaders believe that the core exercise leaves little room for delay, given the approaching 2027 Assembly elections.
While the government has repeatedly maintained that the process will be fast-tracked, ST leaders say the coming weeks will be crucial in determining whether Goa will go to the 2027 Assembly elections with four constituencies reserved for STs for the first time.