Key facts
- TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghose stated that the anti-defection law does not permit a 'separate group' to operate within Parliament.
- According to Ghose, legislators must either join a merged party or refuse the merger to avoid disqualification.
- The Tenth Schedule of the Constitution outlines conditions for avoiding disqualification in cases of party mergers.
- A faction of TMC Lok Sabha MPs plans to request separate seating arrangements from the Speaker.
- This statement comes amid internal dissent within the Trinamool Congress, involving Lok Sabha MPs and West Bengal MLAs.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghose asserted that India's anti-defection law does not provide for a "separate group" to function within Parliament while retaining seats won on a party's symbol. She referenced Paragraph 4 of the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, which allows for disqualification to be avoided only in cases of a formal merger between political parties, and under specific conditions.
Ghose explained that legislators must either join the newly merged party or refuse to join it. She emphasized that individual or breakaway groups cannot legally exist within Parliament or state assemblies while holding seats under the original party's name and symbol. The law, she stated, is clear: merge with a new party or face disqualification, otherwise, membership of the House is illegal.
This statement comes amid significant internal dissent within the Trinamool Congress. Approximately 20 TMC Lok Sabha MPs, reportedly led by Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, have rebelled against the party. Additionally, 58 MLAs in West Bengal, under the leadership of expelled MLA Ritabrata Banerjee, have also shown dissent. Three Rajya Sabha MPs, including Sukhendu Sekhar Ray, Sushmita Dev, and Prakash Baraik, have resigned from their upper house seats and party membership.
The rebel faction of TMC MPs is expected to meet Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Monday to formally request separate seating arrangements for themselves.