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* SHRI TH. CHAOBA SINGH (INNER MANIPUR): Thank you very much for giving me the time to participate in this debate. I would like to speak in Manipuri.

Madam, I extend my support to the Statutory Resolution brought by Hon’ble Home Minister, along with suggestions. How the President’s Rule came into being in Manipur? Madam Chairperson, this House knows it is because of the Anti-Defection Law. Smaller States like Manipur are suffering from political instability because of this law and now we can see it in Meghalaya. Legislatures are defecting every now and then due to the weakness of the Anti-Defection Law. This was the primary cause. Another reason was that among the partners of NDA there was difference and there was clash of BJP policy and Samata policy. BJP does not want to form a Government with the defectors. Samata wanted to form a Government encouraging defections. This is the thing! How the first Government was pulled down? The Samata welcomed all the hoards of defectors from Congress. As a result a new Government was formed. Soon after some legislatures left Samata group and joined BJP but BJP leadership here did not want to form the Government with the defectors. Then it finally resulted in President’s Rule.

President’s Rule was imposed not because of law and order situation or financial problem, it was mainly because of defections. One of the major flaws of the Anti-Defection Law is that one third of the legislatures can leave the party. If a party has only three elected legislatures any one of them can leave the party. Taking advantage of this, defections are carried out in smaller States very frequently. It is not the problem of Manipur alone. Therefore, Madam Chairperson, I would like to submit in this August House that we need to amend and improve the Anti-Defection Law at the earliest, particularly for the interest of the small States.

__________________________________________________________________*English trasnslation of the speech originally delivered in Manipuri.

Once a person is elected on a particular party ticket, he should not be allowed to defect to other party for the entire term. If he defects he should lose his seat. Such kind of provision must be included in this law. Otherwise, in future also there will be political uncertainty and instability in the smaller States of the country. This problem will also crop up in the newly formed small States like Uttaranchal. Therefore, we need to amend this Anti-Defection Law as soon as possible.