Chandigarh, October 15
As Punjab’s political turmoil simmers, former Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal is beginning to see his support in the Shiormani Akali Dal dwindle. To add to it, the legal framework (read the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, the Anti-Defection Law and a Supreme Court ruling) has nearly choked all options at Manpreet’s disposal. He seems to be stuck with the SAD till he seeks re-election.

It is now clear that even after he quits SAD, Manpreet will neither be able to form a party of his own nor join any other political party till he seeks re-election. The Anti-Defection Law and the Supreme Court clearly states that even after being expelled from the party a legislator will have to remain attached to the parent party and obey its whip in all matters.

The former FM, who is a postgraduate in Law from the London School of Economics, knows that till he is re-elected from Gidderbaha or any other seat, the party whip would continue to be applicable to him and any violation of the same will invite disqualification and cost him his seat. Such legislators can’t even claim that since they were expelled they should be treated as “unattached”

The only option then left with Manpreet is to form a group of 11 legislators to push the SAD-BJP alliance below the simple majority, which is 59 in a House of 117. In that case too, all dissidents are bound by the party whip and

must vote for the party on whose ticket they sought elections. However, if they disobey the whip, it would lead to their disqualification. Therefore, only those legislators would go against the party whip who don’t mind seeking a re-election.

The Supreme Court, in its judgment, in a case titled G.Viswanathan versus The Speaker Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, Madras, has ruled: “….classification of the members in the Tenth Schedule proceeds only on the manner of their entry into the House, (1) one who has been elected on his being set up by a political party as a candidate for election as such member; (2) one who has been elected as a member otherwise than as a candidate set up by any political party - usually referred to as an “Independent” candidate in an election; and (3) one who has been nominated”.

“……..if a person belonging to a political party that had set him up as a candidate, gets elected to the House and thereafter joins another political party for whatever reasons, either because of his expulsion from the party or otherwise, he voluntarily gives up his membership of the political party and incurs the disqualification”.