'Left it to Speaker's wisdom': Abhishek Banerjee on Trinamool defectors

📌 Summary:

• A TMC delegation led by national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and submitted petitions seeking the disqualification of 20 rebel party MPs for defecting
• Abhishek said the rebel MPs have sold their "conscience" and that if they have an issue with the TMC they should first resign from Lok Sabha and contest fresh elections; he said TMC hopes the Speaker, as custodian of the House, acts "as per the Constitution"
• The dispute arose after a group of MPs led by Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar approached the Speaker claiming they had "merged" with the NCPI (a Tripura-based party) and should function as a separate bloc in the Lok Sabha
• The case turns on the anti-defection law (Tenth Schedule): the "merger" exception protects defectors only if at least two-thirds of the legislature party agrees to merge with another party
• The Speaker is the adjudicating authority on disqualification petitions under the Tenth Schedule, making the timing and interpretation of "merger" central to the outcome

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS2 Polity — anti-defection law (Tenth Schedule), the Speaker's adjudicatory role, the merger exception and debates on strengthening the law.

📝 Prelims Facts:

• Anti-defection provisions are in the Tenth Schedule (inserted by the 52nd Constitutional Amendment, 1985)
• The merger exception requires agreement of not less than two-thirds of the legislature party members
• Disqualification petitions are decided by the Presiding Officer (Speaker/Chairman)
• 20 TMC MPs face disqualification petitions; NCPI is a Tripura-based party

🔑 Key Term: Tenth Schedule (Anti-Defection Law) - constitutional provisions that disqualify legislators for defection, subject to a merger exception requiring two-thirds of the legislature party.