The Andhra Pradesh government has decided to drop the law banning individuals with more than two children from contesting in rural and urban local body elections.
The rule will be scrapped by amending the Andhra Pradesh Municipal Corporation Act of 1955, the AP Municipalities Act of 1965 for municipal corporations and municipalities, and the AP Panchayat Raj Act of 1994. The law was first instituted in India by the Andhra Pradesh government in 1994.
The Naidu government’s decision has come in view of socio-economic needs and to improve the balance of the population, taking into consideration the falling total fertility rate in the state.
It is noticeable that in the upcoming 2026 delimitation, south Indian states, including Andhra Pradesh will likely face disadvantages compared to north Indian states. The rule to debar persons with more than two kids was instituted as a part of India’s efforts to encourage population control during the 1980s and 1990s.
In 2018, chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu had said, “Have more kids, keep the state young,” highlighting the demographic characteristics of south Indian states after enforcing strong population control norms.
