Defection in Indian Politics

Context

In recent Indian political scenarios, many defectors have not only won subsequent elections but have also secured ministerial positions. This phenomenon has significant impacts on the political landscape.

Impacts of Defection

• Government Instability: Defections can topple governments, particularly in coalition setups. For instance, the Karnataka government collapsed in 2019 due to defections, leading to disrupted policies and uncertainty.
• Eroded Public Trust: Frequent party-switching by representatives can lead to voter disenchantment, potentially contributing to low voter turnouts, as seen in the 67.4% turnout during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
• Weakened Ideologies: Defections often prioritize personal gain over party principles. Leaders frequently cite “ideological differences” as reasons for defection, but these moves are often viewed as strategic attempts to enhance political positions.
• Horse-Trading and Corruption: Financial incentives and promises of power can drive defections, fostering corruption. An example is the bribery accusations involving MLAs in Madhya Pradesh in 2020.

Criticisms of the Anti-Defection Law

• Resignation Loophole: Legislators can resign from their parties and join another, avoiding disqualification. This facilitates engineered collapses of governments and new alliances.
• Speaker’s Bias: The authority to decide on disqualification lies with the Speaker (Lok Sabha) or Chairman (Rajya Sabha), who may exhibit bias.
• Merger Exception Misuse: The law allows entire parties to merge without individual members facing disqualification. Smaller parties often exploit this loophole for personal gains.
• Excessive Party Control: Legislators may be coerced into voting along party lines, stifling healthy debate and the representation of constituents’ views.
• Weak Enforcement: Defection cases often proceed slowly and opaquely, allowing for manipulation.
• Erosion of Political Morality: The emphasis on controlling legislators can overshadow the development of robust public policy platforms, harming political discourse.

Way Forward

• Addressing the Resignation Loophole: Introduce a “cooling-off” period post-resignation during which legislators cannot join another party without facing disqualification.
• Ensuring Impartial Adjudication: Transfer the authority to decide defection cases from the Speaker/Chairman to an independent body, such as a strengthened Election Commission.
• Reforming the Merger Exception: Implement stricter criteria for party mergers to ensure they are based on ideological alignment rather than mere survival.
• Balancing Party Discipline & Individual Conscience: Promote intra-party democracy to empower legislators in policy decisions and reduce coercion by introducing conscience votes.
• Strengthening Enforcement Mechanisms: Ensure swift and transparent judgments with stricter penalties for guilty legislators and parties to enhance the deterrent effect.
• Fostering Political Morality: Encourage internal reforms within political parties to strengthen ideological platforms and attract candidates with genuine convictions.

By addressing these issues, the political landscape in India can be made more stable, transparent, and trustworthy.