NEW DELHI: V P Singh said that there was a need for a “review” of the anti-defection law.
“Whatever changes are there (in the law), we will go into it,” Singh said during the course of his reply to the motion of thanks on the president’s address.
He made the point when. Congress-I member H R Bharadwaj sought to know the government’s stand on the anti-defection law.
The anti-defection bill was passed by the previous government of Rajiv Gandhi, to deal with members crossing the floor. Under this, a defecting member would lose his membership. However, if a group of members comprising one third of a party defected, it would not come under the purview of this law.
The bill, before it was passed by the previous government, was Presented in the parliament a number of times without being passed during Indira Gandhi’s Prime Minister Ship.
Article extracted from this publication >> January 5, 1990
