Which of the following statements you agree with the most? Give your reasons:

1. Legislators must be free to join any party they want.

2. Anti-defection law has contributed to the domination of the party leaders over the legislators.

3. Defection is always for selfish purposes and therefore, a legislator who wants to join another party must be disqualified from being a minister for the next two years.

1. When a legislator joins any other party leaving his own party this act is called defection. The anti-defection amendment has not been able to curb defections. It has given additional powers to the party leadership and the presiding officers of the legislatures over the members. The presiding officer of a House is the authority who takes a final decision on the defection. Such a person is disqualified and he loses his membership of the House. He is also disqualified from holding any political office.

2. In all the three statements I most agree with the second statement, because the party leaders issue the party-whip that if a member remains absent in the House on a particular day or if he votes against the instructions of the party then his membership of the party would be terminated. Such type of Anti-defection law has empowered the leaders of the party and the presiding officers. Thus the Anti-defection law has contributed to the domination of the party leaders over the legislators. If a legislator is free to join any party he wants, then it will be against the will of the voters who have elected them.

3. According to the third option, defection is always for selfish purposes and therefore a legislator who wants to join another party must be disqualified from being a minister for the next two years. This punishment would not be enough because his membership of the House would not be lost. Hence the second statement is the most suitable to be agreed upon.