Lok Sabha to assemblies: India's young lawmakers don't have the numbers

MPs and MLAs are typically middle aged and form a majority in most political parties

In the first Lok Sabha elections in 1951-52, the average age of Members of Parliament (MP) was 46.5. As many as 82 MPs were below the age of 35, the highest such number in history and meaning that almost one in every six of them was under 35. It was the second youngest Lok Sabha.

 

The House has aged. In the present 18th Lok Sabha of 543 elected members, only one in every 20 MPs is younger than 35. Samajwadi Party leader Pushpendra Saroj, who represents Kaushambi constituency, is the youngest MP at age 25. (There are 25 MPs aged 35 or below.)

 

The average age of MPs is 56, making the lower house the oldest in India’s parliamentary history and a year older than the previous Lok Sabha, according to an analysis of data provided by the Association for Democratic Reforms.

 

Average age has increased overall because there are more MPs older than 55 since the 2019 elections. MPs aged 56 to 65 are the largest such cohort. 

 

While there is talk of giving younger politicians a chance, most political parties’ MPs are aged 46 to 65.

 

The Congress has six MPs younger than 35: The highest such number among political parties and up from just one in the 2019 election. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Samajwadi Party are next, each having four MPs younger than 35. The BJP had 12 such MPs in 2019.  

 

The young are underrepresented in state assemblies as well. After elections in eight states this year, the share of Members of Legislative Assemblies (MLAs) aged 40 or younger is 10 per cent or less. Arunachal Pradesh had no MLA aged 40 or younger.

 

Jharkhand is an exception: 16 per cent of its MLAs are under the age of 40, making it the youngest state assembly among the newly elected governments in 2024. 

 

The Lok Sabha elected in 1998 was the youngest: The average age of its MPs was 46.4.