Himachal bill to end pension for MLAs disqualified under anti-defection law

Earlier this year, six Congress MLAs - Sudhir Sharma, Ravi Thakur, Rajinder Rana, Inder Dutt Lakhanpal, Chetanya Sharma, and Devinder Kumar - were disqualified under the anti-defection law

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Tuesday presented a bill in the Himachal Pradesh Assembly aimed at suspending pension benefits for members who are disqualified under the anti-defection law. 

The legislation, known as the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly (Allowances and Pension of Members) Amendment Bill 2024, was reportedly introduced to address absence of provisions in the 1971 Act to discourage defection, prevent constitutional violations, protect the people's mandate, and uphold democratic values.

According to the Bill, "A person shall not be entitled to a pension under the Act if they have been disqualified at any point under the tenth schedule of the Constitution (anti-defection law)."

Earlier this year, six Congress MLAs — Sudhir Sharma, Ravi Thakur, Rajinder Rana, Inder Dutt Lakhanpal, Chetanya Sharma, and Devinder Kumar — were disqualified for not following the party whip by abstaining from the vote on the 2024-25 Budget and related discussions. While Sudhir Sharma and Inder Dutt Lakhanpal managed to reclaim their seats in by-elections, the other four did not succeed in their attempts to be re-elected.

Financial difficulties in Himachal Pradesh

In August, Sukhu declared that he, along with his ministers, chief parliamentary secretaries, and the chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of various boards and corporations, would postpone receiving their salaries and allowances for two months due to the state's ongoing financial difficulties.

Sukhu also mentioned that the Revenue Deficit Grant (RDG) allocated for the financial year 2023-24 was Rs 8,058 crore, but has been cut by Rs 1,800 crore to Rs 6,258 crore for the current financial year.

The chief minister had said, “In 2025-26, the revenue deficit grant will be reduced by another Rs 3,000 crore to a mere Rs 3,257 crore, which will make it even tougher for us to meet our needs."

(With agency inputs)