Since independence, Indian political parties have had defections, desertions, and splits in their ranks. Previously, a weak central government and fragmented politics in states resulted in defections when politicians switched sides in order to build a majority administration. In the last eight years, the tendency appears to have reversed. The presence of a powerful political party with a large majority at the Centre now ensures these divisions and the dethronement of elected administrations.
Defections of MLAs have precipitated the fall of various state administrations in recent years, including Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, Karnataka, and, most recently, Maharashtra. In nearly all of these situations, the BJP appeared to have sparked the crisis and ended up creating a new government. Defections are no longer a reflection of fragmented politics since the BJP sees an opportunity whenever a stable administration meets internal disagreement.
Congress’s ranks are dwindling;
In recent years, Congress has witnessed the most and highest-profile departures. Himanta Biswa Sarma, the BJP’s strong face in Assam, joined the party in 2015 and finally became Chief Minister in 2021. Similarly, Jyotiraditya Scindia, the party’s primary face in Madhya Pradesh, is now a Union minister. The Congress also witnessed current Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu leave the party and finally join the BJP.
Former Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh, former Punjab party president Sunil Jakhar, former Union minister Ashwani Kumar, and party strongmen in UP Jitin Prasada and RPN Singh have all joined the BJP. This year, veteran leader Kapil Sibal startled everyone by leaving the party and filing his Rajya Sabha nomination from the Samajwadi Party.
The Congress-BJP rivalry may have peaked during the 2017 Uttarakhand assembly elections. This election produced unprecedented defections and crossovers in all but 15-20 of the state’s 70 seats. Such was the blatant defections that even the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) turned against the BJP. In Uttarakhand, Goa, and Uttarakhand, both the Congress and the BJP experienced infighting. The state experienced eight CMs in its first 16 years, with some of them switching sides. The BJP had five chief ministers in its first seven years in office, whereas the Congress had three in its ten years in power. This was similar to the scenario in Goa, where RSS officials had turned against the ruling BJP.
Strategic alliances;
Opportunistic coalitions and political defections are two main causes that have severely harmed the Indian democracy. Both are intertwined and frequently appear together, most notably after Eknath Shinde defected with Shiv Sena MLAs to dethrone Uddhav Thackeray before joining forces with the BJP to establish the Maharashtra administration. Nitish Kumar, the Chief Minister of Bihar, startled political experts twice a week in July 2017. The country appears to be in a period of defections, with the BJP benefiting the most and the Congress suffering the most. As many as 433 MLAs and MPs switched parties and ran in the elections. 225 of them were elected, demonstrating that people had minimal problem electing a traitor.
Post Your Comments