Kapil Sibal proposes ban on party defectors

The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has backed senior advocate and former Union Law Minister Kapil Sibal‘s proposal to impose a ban on MPs and MLAs who defect from their political parties. CJP’s national convener Abhijeet Dipke called the suggestion a ‘need of the hour.’

Sibal, while delivering a talk on ‘Horse Trade and Democracy’ in Kochi, Kerala, recently called for changes to the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution so that party mergers don’t act as “loopholes for mass walkouts”.

Sibal highlighted that, under the current law, a defection does not lead to disqualification if two-thirds of the legislative party members cross over to another party, treating it as a merger. He emphasised the need to amend the Tenth Schedule to close this “loophole” and ensure that “a merger is a merger of political parties and not a collective walkout by legislators”.

Proposed Changes to the Anti-Defection Law

Sibal, an independent member of the Rajya Sabha, suggested scrapping the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution and replacing it with a provision under which any legislator who changed parties mid-term would be disqualified from holding public office or any constitutional position for 10 years. Sibal also argued that resignation or merger should not provide an exemption from such disqualification.

Saurav Das, the co-convener of CJP, supported the proposal, pointing out that it aligns with their first demand charter. “Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal‘s proposal to ban any MP and MLA who gets elected on Party X’s symbol and later defects to Party Y for money or under pressure should be welcomed. He calls for a 10-year ban,” he said.

Kapil Sibal served as the Union Minister for Law and Justice from May 2013 to May 2014 under the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. Das added that point 5 of CJP’s first demand charter, released by Abhijeet Dipke, proposed even stricter measures: banning individuals from holding any public office or contesting elections for 20 years.

Defection in Focus Again

Defection has been in focus many times before. And this time, the issue gained renewed focus amid the ongoing split in the Trinamool Congress in the Lok Sabha and the West Bengal Assembly. In the Lok Sabha, 20 of the TMC’s 28 MPs have announced they are leaving the party to join the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI) and extend support to the BJP-led NDA.

This situation has brought the anti-defection law and its two-thirds merger provision into sharper focus. The TMC developments follow the decision of seven Aam Aadmi Party Rajya Sabha MPs to join the BJP earlier this year, with the group also invoking the two-thirds merger provision.

In West Bengal, the faction led by Ritabrata Banerjee is seeking recognition as the TMC, staking claim to the party’s name, organisational control, assets and election symbol. The faction has claimed the support of a majority of the party’s newly elected MLAs.

The Election Commission has begun assessing the competing claims of the Ritabrata and Mamata Banerjee factions. The developments have put the spotlight on the provision in the Tenth Schedule that protects legislators from disqualification when two-thirds of a legislative party is deemed to have merged with another political party.

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Under the anti-defection law, it is not enough for two-thirds of the MPs to say they want to form a separate bloc or align with the NDA, experts said, adding that just two-thirds of Lok Sabha MPs seeking a separate bloc might not amount to a merger and will not shield them from disqualification. The law will treat them as defectors as long as there is no merger.

The TMC developments have also drawn comparisons with previous splits within other political parties, such as the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party in Maharashtra. In 2022, Eknath Shinde led a majority of Shiv Sena MLAs away from Uddhav Thackeray, resulting in a change of government, while in 2023, Ajit Pawar split the NCP and joined the BJP-led government with a group of party legislators.

Assessing the Competing Claims

The CJP’s demand for a stricter anti-defection law has gained traction in the wake of these developments. The party’s proposed 20-year ban on defectors from holding public office or contesting elections is seen as a measure to prevent political parties from misusing the anti-defection law for their own gain. As Abhijeet Dipke, the CJP’s national convener, stated, “Any elected representative who switches parties after being elected should be barred from holding public office.” The Election Commission has begun assessing the competing claims of the Ritabrata and Mamata Banerjee factions.