The underlying malaise of defections will keep surfacing and tarnishing the image of the State as long as we elect persons who are morally bankrupt. If the person elected does not believe in ethics and in being loyal to the party and the electorate that voted for him or her, then the time has come to enshrine public morality in elected representatives through the law. That is the only option before the Nation and the State to end the kind of political realignments that are taking place in Goa that result from the politics of convenience. Unfortunately, the lawmakers are the very politicians who use the loopholes in the law to change colours, so can they be expected to amend the law for such a purpose?

The Centre has been proposing simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and the State Legislative Assemblies. The argument for this is to ensure that the pace and process of governance and development is not affected by the model code of conduct that is put in place every time there is an election. Last year in Goa, no sooner had the code of conduct that was in place of the Assembly elections been lifted, another came into being for the panchayat polls, and a little later it was the by-elections in Panjim and Valpoi that forced another model code of conduct upon the people. If the Centre can consider simultaneous elections for this reason, why can’t it also consider a ban on defections as the by-elections do result in a code of conduct? When there can be a stringent code of conduct in the run-up to the election, why can’t there be a code of conduct that those elected have to follow?

There is a dire need being felt in the country for such a code, as political parties appear to have inadequate provisions to stop their MLAs from crossing the floor. Take the occurrences in Goa as an instance. The whispers that Subhash Shirodkar and Dayanand Sopte would quit as MLAs, resign from the Congress and join the BJP were first heard on Sunday evening. For over 24 hours the Congress did nothing or was unable to do anything to stop this from happening, even though the MLAs were in the State. After they flew to New Delhi in the middle of the night, there was little the party could do to stop the MLAs from crossing over. In a few months, the two local MLAs who have switched sides will now face the electorate on a different party symbol. Should this be acceptable?

The time is therefore right for some electoral reforms that would prohibit an elected representative from changing sides once elected or at least severe restrictions placed on the movement of elected representatives. Any MP or MLA who quits the party on whose ticket he was elected should be barred from contesting an election for a certain period of time that should extend beyond the six months by which fresh elections should be held for the seat that has been vacated. Similarly, a person who has not been a member of a party for at least six months, should be prohibited from contesting the election on that party ticket. 

It is critical to instill public morality among politicians to have a smooth functioning of the government. There is a certain amount of outrage among the people, as can be seen by the posts and memes in social media. A change in the law to keep politicians changing sides from the electoral battle would not find opposition among the people. It only depends on whether the government has the will to rein in the party-hopping MLAs.