- By Deeksha Gour
- Sun, 07 Dec 2025 08:05 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Congress MP Manish Tewari has introduced a private member’s bill in the Lok Sabha seeking to give lawmakers more freedom while voting on legislation. The bill, brought during the ongoing Winter Session ending on December 19, aims to amend the anti-defection law so that MPs are not forced to follow their party’s whip on every issue.
At present, all MPs and MLAs must vote as directed by their party, failing which they can face disqualification. Tewari said his proposal is intended to allow MPs to vote independently on most legislative matters, except in situations linked directly to the stability of the government.
Whip-Free Lawmaking, Says Congress MP
Tewari described his bill as an effort to end what he called “whip-driven tyranny” and to promote “good lawmaking”. He said the idea is to decide who holds the real authority in a democracy “the elector who stands in the sun for hours… or the political party whose whip the representative becomes the helot of?”
The Chandigarh MP has introduced similar proposals twice earlier, in 2010 and 2021. Private member’s bills rarely become law, but the move comes at a time when the Congress faces electoral setbacks and internal disagreements. Tewari is among the leaders in the party who often take positions different from the official line.
Concerns Over Current Lawmaking Process
Speaking to PTI, Tewari said, “This bill seeks to return conscience, constituency and common sense to the echelons of the legislature.” He argued that whips reduce legislators to “lobotomised numbers” and “dogmatic ciphers”. According to him, many laws are passed with little discussion because MPs do not feel they play a meaningful role in shaping legislation.
He criticised the existing practice where, he said, “the law is made by some joint secretary in some ministry”, then read out briefly in Parliament and pushed through with predictable voting patterns on both sides due to whips.
Background To Anti-Defection Law
Tewari noted that from 1950 to 1985, whips did not carry coercive consequences. He traced the tightening of the anti-defection law to the 1967 defection wave known as “Aaya Ram Gaya Ram”, when one legislator in Haryana switched sides “eight times in one day”.
He added that former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi brought the Tenth Schedule in the 1980s to curb defections, but “even after 30 years”, the issue has continued, evolving from a “retail activity” in the 1960s to “a mega mall activity” after 2014.