Shimla (Himachal Pradesh): The Himachal Pradesh Assembly on Wednesday passed a Bill which will bar the members of the House who are disqualified under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution (anti-defection law) from drawing pensions. Despite opposition from parties, the bill was approved after a voice vote, signalling a significant shift in political accountability.
Opposition leaders, including Jairam Thakur, Vipin Singh Parmar, and Randhir Sharma, opposed the bill, claiming it was motivated by political revenge. They urged the government to withdraw the bill or send it to a select committee.
The Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly (Allowances and Pension of Members (Amendment) Bill, 2024 will affect six former Congress MLAs, who were disqualified by the Speaker for defying the whip and abstaining from the House during the discussion on cut motions and passing of Budget in February.
This new legislation will affect six former Congress MLAs — Sudhir Sharma, Inder Dutt Lakhanpal, Rajinder Rana, Devinder Kumar Bhutto, Chetanya Sharma, and Ravi Thakur. All of them had voted in favour of the BJP nominee Harsh Mahajan during the Rajya Sabha elections held in February.
All six had contested the by-polls on BJP tickets earlier this year. While Sudhir Sharma and Lakhanpal got re-elected, the other four lost. Himachal is the first state in the country to pass such a bill under which "A person shall not be entitled for pension under the Act, if he has been disqualified at any point of time under the tenth schedule of the Constitution".
The statement of object and reasons of the Amendment Bill passed by voice vote said it was necessitated as there was no provision in the 1971 Act to discourage the defection of members, protect the mandate given by the people, preserve democratic values and deterrence towards "constitutional sin".
The Bill would become an Act after the consent of the Himachal Pradesh Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu emphasised that this amendment is designed to deter defection and prevent the weakening of political values through monetary influence.
He also highlighted that the bill is in line with the legacy of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi's efforts to curb unethical practices in politics.
BJP MLA Rakesh Jamwal said the Bill was brought in haste and asked how it could be implemented retrospectively.
Leader of opposition Jai Ram Thakur said the Bill smells of "political revenge". The Speaker disqualified the Congress members for violating the party whip and as such they do not attract action under the Tenth Schedule, he claimed.
Himachal Pradesh Revenue Minister Jagat Singh Negi defended the Bill and said defection weakens democracy and defectors should be punished for this action. (With Agency Inputs)
Read More
