17th Lok Sabha: In many ways, the new lower house will break old patterns
The 17th Lok Sabha will have 27 Muslim members — more than the previous one. Over half of them have been elected from non-Muslim majority constituencies.
By ET Bureau | Updated:
BCCL
President Ram Nath Kovind today asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to decide the Council of Ministers and the date of his swearing-in ceremony.
The Election Commission submitted a list of newly-elected MPs to President Ram Nath Kovind, setting in motion the process for constituting the 17th Lok Sabha. Here's why the new lower House will break old patterns.
Hindus in the House The new Lok Sabha will be more than 90% Hindu, in large part a result of BJP MPs being 99.6% Hindu. Also, nearly half of the Lower House members will be from the upper castes.
Scheduled Tribe MPs from ‘General’ Seats SC and ST candidates tend to be ghettoised into reserved constituencies only. But this time, 33 Scheduled Tribe candidates contested from “general” seats. All four ST candidates put up by the BJP in “general” seats won while four put up by the Congress lost.
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Majority are male, middle-aged, educated and most of them will be new to the Lok Sabha.
SC Seat Squeeze In the case of Scheduled Caste candidates, the squeeze is tighter. The BSP appears to be more “caste-less” in its ticket distribution. However, it has so far given SCs tickets in general seats in states other than UP, where it is competitive. More Seats Go to Muslims
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The 17th Lok Sabha will have 27 Muslim members — more than the previous one. Over half of them have been elected from non-Muslim majority constituencies. In 2014, just 11 Muslims were elected from non-Muslim majority constituencies.
