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Title: Discussion regarding Electoral Reforms raised by Shri Devendra Prasad Yadav on 3rd May, 2005.

15.28 hrs. DUSCUSSION UNDER RULE 193 Electoral Reforms – contd.

MR. CHAIRMAN: The House will now take up further discussion regarding Electoral Reforms raised by Shri Devendra Prasad Yadav. Shri Sudhakar Reddy may speak now.

SHRI SURAVARAM SUDHAKAR REDDY (NALGONDA): Sir, comprehensive electoral reforms is the need of the hour to create confidence among the people to improve voting in India. Some ills of the system are the bye-products of the structural defects in the electoral system. Lop-sided and corrupt system pave way for petty leaders and mafia gangsters to gatecrash into the Legislatures.

The wholesale defection is allowable and retail defection is not allowable. This is a very unfortunate situation. You will have to change the anti-defection law. When a defection is committed, whether it is defection committed by an individual or by a group of people, it should have the same effect. So, my humble submission is that the anti-defection law will have to be changed to suit the changing conditions.

16.20 hrs. (Shri Devendra Prasad Yadav in the Chair) Now, for ourselves, we will have to make self-criticism. In India, a party which has got minority votes can get into power and a party which has got 25 or 30 per cent of the total votes polled can have majority in the House. It is not a real reflection of the will of the people. Now, we are thinking of coalition Government at the Centre as well as in the States. That has become the order of the day. So, in that context, why do we not think of having proportional representation system in our country also? That will reflect the real will of the people. If no party is getting the majority, every party can have proportional representation. Now, we have UPA Government and previously, we had NDA Government. One party system is over. One-party Government is over and we are having coalition Governments. In this context, why should we not think of introducing proportional representation system in our country? That also will have to be looked into.