Political Defections And Legislative Stability: A Critical Analysis Of India’s Anti-Defection Law
- IJLLR Journal
- Jan 31
- 2 min read
Annapurna M, LLM, CHRIST (Deemed to be University), Bangalore Central Campus.
ABSTRACT
The Anti-Defection Law is the foreground to the Indian democratic system. Considering the perceived shortcomings of the law, its effectiveness has been a topic of ongoing debate. The Anti-Defection Law is enacted to foster political stability and discourage defections. From one perspective it keeps stability in governance by discouraging defections, from another perspective, it encourages large unethical mergers of political parties, diluting the original intention of law. The presiding officer of the house serves as an adjudicator for the defection proceedings. The speaker of the house as the adjudicator safeguards the privileges and rights of the members of the house. However, the perception arises with the presiding officer being influenced by ruling party loyalties, which in turn can affect the principles of neutrality and justice that are prerequisite for a fair adjudication process. The anti-defection law is structured to uphold the integrity and discipline of the political parties by adhering to party ethical standards. Prioritising party loyalty and ethical standard can lead to unintentional consequences. The oppression on diversity of perspectives and healthy debate hinders the democratic discourse of the members of the house. The Indian political setting requires equilibrium between nurturing vibrant democratic debate and ensuring stable governance. This paper seeks to offer an in-depth examination of Anti- Defection Law, focusing specifically on its deficiency in maintaining legislative stability and government transparency. By presenting arguments, the author intends to demonstrate that the Anti-Defection Law emphasises punitive measures over the objectives of government stability and transparency. Through examination of Anti-Defection law impact, potential improvements and effectiveness, this paper aims to enhance the discussion on achieving a balance between party defections and democratic values in context of Indian politics.
Keywords: political-defections, stability, legislature, anti-defection, transparency, democratic.
