A new Parliament building is “prudent” as the total number of seats is likely to increase “substantially” after 2026, the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) has told the Supreme Court.
“The number of Lok Sabha seats has remained unaltered at 545 based on the delimitation carried out on the basis of the 1972 census. It is likely to increase substantially after 2026 as the freeze on total seats is only till 2026. The Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha are packed to capacity and have no space,” a 117-page affidavit said.
The department, which is the project proponent, responded to a petition filed by Rajiv Suri, represented by advocate Shikhil Suri, questioning the multi-crore Central Vista renovation and development project.
It said the new Parliament building is designed to accommodate “more members in the future.” It said the capacity of the Lok Sabha chamber would be three times the present heritage building, which is “distressed” by “over-utilisation.” The Rajya Sabha chamber will have four times’ its present capacity. The Central Hall can hardly accommodate all.
The capacity of the Lok Sabha chambers will go up to 876 members. A Joint Session of the Parliament would accommodate 1,224 members. The Rajya Sabha chambers would accommodate 400 members.
The CPWD said the current heritage building, built between 1921 and 1927, was designed to house the Imperial Legislative Council.
“It was not planned for a bicameral national legislature, that is, the Parliament House,” the affidavit said.
