7 of 10 AAP MPs in Rajya Sabha join BJP: Why this number matters

NEW DELHI: Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha's announcement of qutting Aam Aadmi Party and joining Bharatiya Janata Party was not a lone move. It was linked to specific constitutional provisions involving terms such as “two-thirds” and “merger.”"We have decided that we, the 2/3rd members belonging to the AAP in Rajya Sabha, exercise the provisions of the Constitution of India and merge ourselves with the BJP," he said addressing a press conference.If at least two-thirds of the members of a party in the House agree to merge with another party, it is treated as a valid merger and not defection. In such cases, members are not disqualified under the anti-defection law, making this provision crucial in group-level political realignments like the one announced by MPs.Currently, there are 10 MPs in Rajya Sabha from AAP. After this move, two-third, that is, 7 are set to merge with BJP. If this number was any less, those wanting to merge would have to give up their Upper House membership.Hence, if Chadha had quit alone, he would have to give up his Rajya Sabha membership. But that is not the case as the outgoing AAP leader is joined by Swati Maliwal, Harbhajan Singh, Sandeep Pathak, Ashok Mittal, Rajinder Gupta and Vikram Sahni.The anti-defection law, under the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution, is meant to prevent MPs from switching parties after being elected and to maintain stability in Parliament, including the Rajya Sabha. It provides for disqualification if a member voluntarily gives up party membership or votes against the party whip.In Rajya Sabha, the decision on disqualification is taken by the chairman based on a petition from another member. However, the law also includes an exception for mergers, which is where the “two-thirds” condition becomes important.