The Anti-Defection Law — Tenth Schedule — KSLU Constitutional Law 2 Notes

The Anti-Defection Law — Tenth Schedule

Added by the 52nd Amendment (1985) to curb the “Aaya Ram, Gaya Ram” culture of floor-crossing.

flowchart TD
    A["Disqualification for defection<br/>(Tenth Schedule)"]:::root
    A --> B["Voluntarily giving up<br/>party membership"]:::leaf
    A --> C["Voting / abstaining against<br/>the party whip (no condonation<br/>in 15 days)"]:::leaf
    A --> D["Exception: MERGER —<br/>two-thirds of the party<br/>genuinely merge"]:::ok
    A --> E["Decided by the Speaker;<br/>subject to judicial review<br/>(Kihoto Hollohan)"]:::leaf

    classDef root fill:#FFF8DC,stroke:#333,color:#000;
    classDef leaf fill:#E6F3FF,stroke:#1E3A8A,color:#000;
    classDef ok fill:#E6FFE6,stroke:#1E8A3A,color:#000;
    linkStyle default stroke:#888,stroke-width:1px;

A member is disqualified for (i) voluntarily giving up party membership or (ii) voting/abstaining against the party whip (unless condoned within 15 days). The sole surviving exception is a genuine merger (two-thirds of the legislature party). Kihoto Hollohan v. Zachillhu (1992) upheld the Schedule but held the Speaker’s decision is subject to judicial review; Nabam Rebia (2016) and later rulings curbed delay and partisan use.