11, August 2025

The Tenth Schedule Loophole: How Mergers Undermine Democratic Mandate

VOLUME-11; ISSUE-8; AUG-2025

Author(s): Mrs. Reecha Parakh

Authors Affiliations:

Research Scholar & Assistant Professor of Law, Govt. State Level P.G. Law College Bhopal

DOIs:10.2015/IJIRMF/202508013     |     Paper ID: IJIRMF202508013


Abstract
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References
This paper critically examines the merger exemptions granted to legislators of political parties under Paragraph 4 of the Tenth Schedule of the Indian Constitution to examine how they affect the integrity of the democratic mandate. Although Paragraph 4 is designed to legitimise widespread ideological disagreement or agreement within political parties, it has often been used strategically to induce defections while avoiding disqualification. Using theoretical analysis, judicial interpretation and recent political examples including Goa (2019), Rajasthan (2019) and Nagaland (2025), this paper assesses whether such mergers protect or erode voter turnout.
Tenth Schedule, Defection, Merger, Disqualification, Democracy, Mandate.

Mrs. Reecha Parakh(2025); The Tenth Schedule Loophole: How Mergers Undermine Democratic Mandate. International Journal for Innovative Research in Multidisciplinary Field, ISSN(O): 2455-0620, Vol-11, Issue-8, Pp. 109-114.         Available on –   https://www.ijirmf.com/

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