Brief Context
Context A private members bill titled “The Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2025 (Amendment of the Tenth Schedule)” has been introduced in Lok Sabha. Major Highlights of the Bill The Tenth Schedule to the Constitution, popularly known as the Anti-Defection Law, was added to the Constitution by the Constitution (Fifty-second Amendment) Act, 1985. The Bill prescribes that a member will lose their seat only if they vote, or abstain from voting, in violation of their party’s direction on a Confidence
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Syllabus: GS2/Polity and Governance
Context
- A private member’s bill titled “The Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2025 (Amendment of the Tenth Schedule)” has been introduced in Lok Sabha.
Major Highlights of the Bill
- The Tenth Schedule to the Constitution, popularly known as the Anti-Defection Law, was added to the Constitution by the Constitution(Fifty-second Amendment) Act, 1985.
- The Bill prescribes that a member will lose their seat only if they vote, or abstain from voting, in violation of their party’s direction on a Confidence Motion, No-confidence Motion, Adjournment Motion, Money Bill, or other financial matters — and not for any other type of vote.
- It allows parliamentarians to take an independent line in voting on bills and motions.
What is Whip?
- A whip refers to an order to members of a party in the House to abide by a certain direction of the party.
- Political parties issue whips to their MPs to either vote for or against the bill, depending on their party line.
- Once the whip is issued, the MPs from each party will necessarily have to obey the whip or else risk losing their seat in Parliament.
- The term is derived from the old British practice of “whipping in” lawmakers to follow the party line.
- It is not mentioned in the constitution but is considered a parliamentary convention.
- Parties appoint a senior member from among their House contingents to issue whips — this member is called a chief whip, and he/ she is assisted by additional whips.
Types of Whip
- There are three kinds.
- A one-line whip just informs members about a vote but permits them to abstain.
- A two-line whip asks them to be present but does not tell them how to vote.
- The three-line whip, largely the norm these days, directs members to be present and vote as per the party line.
Importance of a whip
- The whip maintains discipline, secure attendance of, and gives necessary information to, members of the party.
- It is a channel of communication between the political party and the members of the party in the legislature.
- They also serve the function of gauging the opinion of the members, and communicating it to party leaders.
Anti Defection Law
- The Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, also known as the anti-defection law, was added to prevent political defections.
- Disqualification on ground of defection: A legislator belonging to a political party will be disqualified if he/she:
- voluntarily gives up his party membership, or
- votes/abstains to vote in the House contrary to the direction issued by his political party.
- Independent members will be disqualified if they join a political party after getting elected to the House.
- Nominated members will be disqualified if they join any political party six months after getting nominated.
- A member is not disqualified if he has taken prior permission of his party, or if the voting or abstention is condoned by the party within 15 days.
- Exemptions in cases of merger: Members are exempted from such disqualification when at least two thirds of the original political party merges with another political party.
- the members must have become members of the party they have merged with/into,
- or they should have not accepted the merger and choose to function as a separate group.
- Decision making authority: The decision to disqualify a member from the House rests with the Chairman/Speaker of the House.
Source: TH