Across three Lok Sabha terms between 2009 and 2024, 1,123 representatives from the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, and state Assemblies switched parties. While 318 members defected during the 15th Lok Sabha, the number rose to 434 in the 16th before declining to 371 in the 17th Lok Sabha.
Defections are far more common in Assemblies, largely due to their greater number of elected representatives. During the 15th Lok Sabha period, 86 per cent of those who switched parties were MLAs, compared to 13 per cent Lok Sabha MPs and just 1 per cent Rajya Sabha members.
Meanwhile, the BJP, Congress, and Trinamool Congress (TMC) are the top three parties that have received the highest share of defecting members. The BJP attracted 14 per cent of defectors during the 15th Lok Sabha period, surging to 38 per cent in the 16th before settling at 31 per cent in the 17th. The Congress saw its share fall from 17 per cent to 10 per cent, where it remained. The AITC’s share rose gradually from 2 per cent to 8 per cent over the same period.
Elected representatives in the Parliament and state Assemblies cannot freely switch parties due to the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution. In practice, such members usually take one of two routes: either they resign from their seat first and then join another party (triggering a by-election), or they move as part of a group comprising at least two-thirds of their party’s legislators, which qualifies as a merger and avoids disqualification.
P D T Achary, former secretary-general of the Lok Sabha, explained that politicians tend to switch parties for two broad reasons. First, many in the Opposition quit their parties in search of better prospects, especially when they perceive limited electoral space within their own party, and often end up joining the ruling party. Second, some members of ruling parties also defect, typically when they anticipate shifts in political alignments or the emergence of an alternative formation that could improve their prospects.
“Elected representatives and political parties often have a better sense of ground realities and future electoral prospects than outside political experts. In this context, ideology appears to have become less significant for many politicians today, with strategic considerations and electoral viability taking precedence,” Achary added.
Looking at electoral behaviour, the share of Lok Sabha MPs who switched parties before re-contesting elections has also fluctuated. Around 10 per cent of MPs switched parties out of the total re-contesting MPs ahead of the 15th Lok Sabha elections, 9.5 per cent did so before the 16th Lok Sabha elections, and the figure rose to 12.9 per cent ahead of the 17th Lok Sabha elections.
Regionally, during the 17th Lok Sabha period, the distribution of MLAs who switched parties shows notable variation. The North East accounted for the largest share at 29 per cent, followed by the North at 23 per cent. The South contributed 17 per cent, the East 15 per cent, the West 14 per cent, and Central India just 2 per cent.
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