Anti-Defection Law

Why in News

Recently, the Calcutta High Court has given West Bengal Assembly Speaker a deadline to pass an order in the defection case involving a Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA).

• Anti-defection proceedings are also going on in other states such as Jharkhand and Rajasthan.

Key Points

• About:
  
  • The anti-defection law punishes individual Members of Parliament (MPs)/MLAs for leaving one party for another.
  • Parliament added it to the Constitution as the Tenth Schedule in 1985. Its purpose was to bring stability to governments by discouraging legislators from changing parties.
    
    • The Tenth Schedule - popularly known as the Anti-Defection Act - was included in the Constitution via the 52^nd Amendment Act, 1985 and sets the provisions for disqualification of elected members on the grounds of defection to another political party.
    • It was a response to the toppling of multiple state governments by party-hopping MLAs after the general elections of 1967.
  • However, it allows a group of MP/MLAs to join (i.e. merge with) another political party without inviting the penalty for defection. And it does not penalise political parties for encouraging or accepting defecting legislators.
    
    • As per the 1985 Act, a 'defection' by one-third of the elected members of a political party was considered a 'merger'.
    • But the 91^st Constitutional Amendment Act, 2003, changed this and now at least two-thirds of the members of a party have to be in favour of a "merger" for it to have validity in the eyes of the law.
  • The members disqualified under the law can stand for elections from any political party for a seat in the same House.
  • The decision on questions as to disqualification on ground of defection are referred to the Chairman or the Speaker of such House, which is subject to ‘Judicial review’.
    
    • However, the law does not provide a time-frame within which the presiding officer has to decide a defection case.
• Grounds of Disqualification:
  
  • If an elected member voluntarily gives up his membership of a political party.
  • If he votes or abstains from voting in such House contrary to any direction issued by his political party or anyone authorised to do so, without obtaining prior permission.
    
    • As a pre-condition for his disqualification, his abstention from voting should not be condoned by his party or the authorised person within 15 days of such incident.
  • If any independently elected member joins any political party.
  • If any nominated member joins any political party after the expiry of six months.
• Related Issues:
  
  • Undermining Representative & Parliamentary Democracy:
    
    • After enactment of the Anti-defection law, the MP or MLA has to follow the party’s direction blindly and has no freedom to vote their judgment.
    • Due to Anti-Defection law, the chain of accountability has been broken by making legislators accountable primarily to the political party.
  • Controversial Role of Speaker:
    
    • In many instances, the Speaker (usually from the ruling party) has delayed deciding on the disqualification.
  • No Recognition of Split:
    
    • Due to the 91^st amendment, the anti-defection law created an exception for anti-defection rulings.
    • However, the amendment does not recognise a ‘split’ in a legislature party and instead recognises a ‘merger’.
  • Subversion of Electoral Mandates:
    
    • Defection is the subversion of electoral mandates by legislators who get elected on the ticket of one party but then find it convenient to shift to another, due to the lure of ministerial berths or financial gains.
  • Affects the Normal Functioning of Government:
    
    • The infamous “Aaya Ram, Gaya Ram” slogan was coined against the background of continuous defections by the legislators in the 1960s. The defection leads to instability in the government and affects the administration.
  • Promote Horse-Trading:
    
    • Defection also promotes horse-trading of legislators which clearly go against the mandate of a democratic setup.
• Suggestions:
  
  • The Election Commission has suggested it should be the deciding authority in defection cases.
  • Others have argued that the President and Governors should hear defection petitions.
  • The Supreme Court has suggested that Parliament should set up an independent tribunal headed by a retired judge of the higher judiciary to decide defection cases swiftly and impartially.
  • Some commentators have said the law has failed and recommended its removal. Former Vice President Hamid Ansari has suggested that it applies only to save governments in no-confidence motions.

Way Forward

• If government stability is an issue due to people defecting from their parties, the answer is for parties to strengthen their internal part of democracy.
• There is an ardent need for legislation that governs political parties in India. Such a law should bring political parties under RTI, strengthen intra-party democracy, etc.
• Chairman/Speaker of the house, being the final authority in terms of defection, affects the doctrine of separation of powers. In this context, transferring this power to higher judiciary or to Election Commission may curb the menace of defection.
• In order to shield the detrimental effect of the anti-defection law on representative democracy, the scope of the law can be restricted to only those laws, where the defeat of government can lead to loss of confidence.

Source: IE

Republics in Ancient India

Why in News

Recently, while addressing the United Nations General Assembly, the Prime Minister made an important historical point that India is not just the world’s largest democracy, but also the Mother of Democracy.

• There is evidence of the existence of proto forms of democracy and republicanism in ancient India.

Key Points

• Vedic Governance: The Vedas describe at least two forms of republican governance:
  
  • Monarchy: The first would consist of elected kings. This has always been seen as an early form of democracy.
  • Republics: The second form is that of rule without a monarch, with power vested in a council or sabha.
    
    • The membership of such sabhas was not always determined by birth, but they often comprised people who had distinguished themselves by their actions.
    • There is even a hint of the modern bicameral system of legislatures, with the sabha often sharing power with the samiti, which was made up of common people.
    • The vidhaata, or the assembly of people for debating policy, military matters and important issues impacting all, has been mentioned more than a hundred times in the Rig Veda. Both women and men took part in these deliberations.
• Mahabharata:
  
  • In Chapter 107/108 of Mahabharata’s Shanti Parva, there is a detailed narration about the features of republics (called ganas) in India.
    
    • It states that when there is unity among the people of a republic that republic becomes powerful and its people become prosperous and they are destroyed only by internal conflicts between the people.
  • It shows that in ancient India there were not only kingdoms (like Hastinapur and Indraprastha) but also regions where there was no king but a republic.
• Buddhist Canons:
  
  • The Buddhist Canon, both in Sanskrit (in which much of Mahayana Buddhist literature was written) and in Pali (in which much of Hinayana literature was written) has extensive reference to republics in India, e.g. the Lichchavi city of Vaishali.
    
    • It also describes in detail Vaishali’s rivalry with neighbouring Magadha, which was a monarchy. Had the Lichchavis won, the trajectory of governance may well have been non-monarchical in the Subcontinent.
  • The Mahanibbana Sutta (Pali Buddhist work) and the Avadaana Shatak (a Sanskrit Buddhist text of the second century A.D) also mention that certain areas were under a republican form of government.
  • Buddhist and Jain texts list 16 powerful states or mahajanapadas of the time.

• Greek Records:
  
  • The Greek historian Diodorus Siculus writes that at the time of Alexander’s invasion (in 326 B.C.), most cities in North West India had democratic forms of government (though some areas were under kings, e.g. Ambhi and Porus) and this is also mentioned by the historian Arian.
    
    • Alexander’s army faced its fiercest resistance from the armies of these republics, e.g. the Mallas, and gained victory only after suffering huge casualties.
• Kautilya’s Arthashastra:
  
  • Other sources appear in the Ashtadhyayi of Panini, the Arthashastra of Kautilya, etc.
  • Elements of State by Kautilya: Any state is thought of as composed of seven elements. The first three are swami or the king, amatya or the ministers (administration) and janapada or the people.
    
    • The king must function on the advice of the amatyas for the good of the people.
    • The ministers are appointed from amongst the people (the Arthashastra also mentions entrance tests).
    • As per the Arthashastra, in the happiness and benefit of his people lies the happiness and benefit of the King.

Source: IE

Renunciation of Indian Citizenship Simplified

Why in News

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has simplified the process for Indians who want to renounce their citizenship.

• Earlier, the Central Government issued a notification granting powers related to citizenship applications under existing rules to authorities of five states.

Key Points

• About:
  
  • Provisions have been made for applicants to upload documents online, with an upper limit of 60 days for the renunciation process to be completed.
  • Over 6.7 lakh Indians renounced their citizenship between 2015-19.
  • In 2018, MHA included a column on “circumstances/reasons due to which applicant intends to acquire foreign citizenship and renounce Indian citizenship” (under the Citizenship Rules, 2009).
• Citizenship:
  
  • Constitutional Provisions:
    
    • Citizenship is listed in the Union List under the Constitution and thus is under the exclusive jurisdiction of Parliament.
    • The Constitution does not define the term ‘citizen’ but details of various categories of persons who are entitled to citizenship are given in Part 2 (Articles 5 to 11).
      
      • Unlike other provisions of the Constitution, which came into being on 26^th January, 1950, these articles were enforced on 26^th November, 1949 itself, when the Constitution was adopted.
  • Acquisition of Indian Citizenship:
    
    • The Citizenship Act of 1955 prescribes five ways of acquiring citizenship, viz, birth, descent, registration, naturalisation and incorporation of territory.
  • Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019:
    
    • The Act amended the law to fast-track citizenship for religious minorities, specifically Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan who entered India prior to 2015.
    • The requirement for them to stay in India for at least 11 years before applying for Indian citizenship has been reduced to five years (by naturalisation).
• Ways to Renounce Citizenship in India:
  
  • Voluntary Renunciation:
    
    • If an Indian citizen wishes, who is of full age and capacity, he can relinquish citizenship of India by his will.
    • When a person relinquishes his citizenship, every minor child of that person also loses Indian citizenship. However, when such a child attains the age of 18, he may resume Indian citizenship.
  • By Termination:
    
    • The Constitution of India provides single citizenship. It means an Indian person can only be a citizen of one country at a time.
    • If a person takes the citizenship of another country, then his Indian citizenship ends automatically. However, this provision does not apply when India is busy in war.
  • Deprivation by Government:
    
    • The Government of India may terminate the citizenship of an Indian citizen if;
      
      • The citizen has disrespected the Constitution.
      • Has obtained citizenship by fraud.
        The citizen has unlawfully traded or communicated with the enemy during a war.
      • Within 5 years of registration or naturalisation, a citizen has been sentenced to 2 years of imprisonment in any country.
      • The citizen has been living outside India for 7 years continuously.

Source: TH

Loopholes in Aadhaar-Enabled Payments

Why in News

A series of recent scams have exposed the vulnerabilities of the Aadhaar-enabled Payment System (AePS).

Key Points

• Aadhaar-enabled Payment System (AePS):
  
  • AePS is a bank led model which allows online interoperable financial transactions at PoS (Point of Sale/Micro ATM) through the Business Correspondent (BC)/Bank Mitra of any bank using the Aadhaar authentication.
  • This system adds another layer of security to financial transactions as bank details would no longer be required to be furnished while carrying out these transactions.
  • It was taken up by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) - a joint initiative of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Indian Banks’ Association (IBA).
• Advantages Associated with AePS:
  
  • Decongesting Banks: Like other micro-ATM systems, it has helped to decongest banks. It can be particularly useful to migrant workers who have no ATM facility.
  • Deepening Social Security: It will help in deepening social services after the proliferation of cash transfer schemes from governments to vulnerable citizens.
  • Enabling Last-Mile Service: It will ease the payments which will be done at the doorstep instead of travelling long distances.
    
    • Interoperable system ensures that the customer is not tied to one bank’s BC.
  • Removing Middlemen: The middlemen who exploited the poor and illiterate would now be eliminated.
• Existing Loopholes:
  
  • Fraudulent BC: Sometimes BC, leveraging the financial illiteracy of people, provides less money to the consumer but enters more money to be credited into the BC’s account.
    
    • Manytimes, BCs deny receipts to poor people, if they demand one at all.
    • A corrupt BC can even get away with asking a gullible customer to put her finger in the PoS machine under some pretext, without giving her any money.
  • No accounting of Fraudulent Transactions: AePS has no record of the fraudulent BC, it only shows the transaction records.
    
    • This makes poor people more vulnerable, who already are facing scarcity of funds.
  • Systemic Issues: Failure in transactions owing to biometric mismatches, poor connectivity or weaker systems of certain banking partners, also affect the AePS.

Way Forward

• Providing financial literacy will help in reduction of cases of fraudulent BC.
• Roaming BCs should perhaps be banned, at least in states with low literacy levels.
• Better grievance redressal facilities must be made available to the victims of AePS fraud.

Source: IE

India’s Path to Power: Foreign Policy

Why in News

Recently, a report titled “India’s Path to Power: Strategy in a World Adrift'' highlighted several foregin policy recommendations for India in the present context.

• It underlined that strategic autonomy, openness and inclusive economic growth are the key guiding principles.

Key Points

• Shift of Global Economy: With the rise of China and India, and parallel decline of European Union and US’ hegemony, the global balance of power is shifting towards Asia.
  • This gets reflected in the growing popularity of the Indo-pacific region among western countries.
• Reinforcing Multipolar World Order: There is an increasing trend towards multipolarity in Asia and the world. It is in India’s interest to reinforce this trend.
  • In this context, India should re-orient its foreign policy towards mobilising the larger constituency of developing countries and emerging economies with which it has convergent interests.
  • Such interests should be advanced through reinforcing multilateral institutions and processes.
• Maintaining Strategic Autonomy: Strategic autonomy must go in parallel with the further strengthening of partnerships with the US, Japan and Europe, which share India’s security concerns and development prospects.
  • Also, India-Russia relations will continue to be relevant in dealing with issues in the region and in responding to global challenges.
• Keeping Up With Globalisation: Even though in some respects, globalisation may have stalled, in the past and in the coming future, it will be driven by rapid technological advancement.
  • Therefore, in order to enhance its economic prospects and improve the welfare of its people, India must maintain an outward orientation of its economy.
• Managing the Neighbourhood First: If India wants to play an expanded regional & global role and become a net security provider, it needs to better manage the threats and opportunities emanating from neighbouring countries.
  • In this context, India should deal with the Chinese challenge.
    • This is because China acknowledges that India is the only country in the neighbourhood with the comparable area, population, history, manpower, and scientific and technological capabilities, who can surpass it.
  • It also asserted that China-Pakistan collusion demands India to adopt a politically guided strategic approach.
• Preventing Domestic Politics Affecting Foreign Policy: There have been several instances where many countries have cited reservations to various domestic policies of India. Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 is an example.
  • In this context, domestic policies should reflect inclusivity, reducing inequalities, and delivering core responsibilities of health, education and public security to all its citizens.
  • Also, there is a need to realise that India’s innate cosmopolitanism is derived from its extraordinary diversity.

Source: IE

Heli-Borne Survey for Water Management

Why in News

Recently, the Ministry of Jal Shakti has launched a Heli-Borne Survey Technology for water management in the arid areas of Rajasthan.

Key Points

• About:
  
  • Developed by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)-National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI), it will provide information about level, quantity, quality and information of ground water.
    
    • The NGRI is a geoscientific research organization established in 1961 under the CSIR.
  • The Heli-borne geophysical mapping technique of CSIR-NGRI provides a high-resolution 3D image of the subsurface up to a depth of 500 metres below the ground.
    
    • The main advantages of the Heliborne geophysical survey is that it is fast, highly data dense, precise and economical.
  • This survey will be carried out in two phases, of which the first phase comprises an area spanning 1 lakh sq km.
    
    • This includes 65,000 sq km in Rajasthan, 32,000 sq km in Gujarat and 2,500 sq km in Haryana.
  • It is to be implemented in collaboration with the Ministry of Jal Shakti as a part of National Aquifer Mapping Project.
• Significance:
  
  • Larger areas can be covered to derive more accurate data to help utilize groundwater for drinking purposes.
  • It will help in water conservation, identification of new places for ground water recharging and that too at lesser cost than the prevalent ones like digging tube wells using geophysics and remote sensing techniques.
  • It will help in devising new schemes for improvement in water level in water scant areas.
• Other Related Initiatives:
  
  • Jal Jeevan Mission.
  • Jal Shakti Abhiyan.
  • National River Linking Project (NRLP)
  • National Hydrology Programme.
  • Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayi Yojana (PMKSY).
  • River Basin Management.
  • Atal Bhujal Yojana (ABHY).
  • National Water Mission.

National Aquifer Mapping Project

• It was initiated as a part of the Ground Water Management and Regulation Scheme to delineate and characterize the aquifers (water bearing formations) to develop plans for ground water management.
• It envisages mapping of aquifers, their characterization and development of Aquifer Management Plans to facilitate sustainable management of groundwater resources.

Source: PIB

Nobel Prize in Physics, 2021

Why in News

The 2021 Nobel Prize in Physics is awarded with one half jointly to Syukuro Manabe, Klaus Hasselmann and the other half to Giorgio Parisi “for groundbreaking contributions to our understanding of complex physical systems.”

• This is the first time climate scientists (Manabe and Hasselmann) have been awarded the Physics Nobel. Last year, the award was given for the research into black holes.
• The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2021 has already been announced.

Key Points

• About:
  
  • Manabe and Hasselmann:
    
    • Awarded for work in physical modelling of Earth’s climate, quantifying variability and reliably predicting global warming.
      
      • Demonstrated how increases in the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere would increase global temperatures, laying the foundations for current climate models.
  • Parisi:
    
    • Awarded for “the discovery of the interplay of disorder and fluctuations in physical systems from atomic to planetary scales.”
      
      • He “built a deep physical and mathematical model” that made it possible to understand complex systems in fields such as mathematics, biology, neuroscience and machine learning.

• Climate Science and Nobel Prize Recognition:
  
  • The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) had won the Peace Nobel in 2007, an acknowledgement of its efforts in creating awareness for the fight against climate change.
  • A Chemistry Nobel to Paul Crutzen in 1995, for his work on the ozone layer, is considered the only other time someone from atmospheric sciences has won this honour.

Source: IE

New Biodegradable Polymer

Why in News

Recently, scientists have developed a New biodegradable polymer, using Guar Gum, and Chitosan, which has high potential for packaging material.

Key Points:

• About:
  
  • It is a guar gum-chitosan composite film which is a cross-linked polysaccharide developed with the help of solution casting method (a simple technique to make polymer films). It overcomes the challenges of polysaccharides.
    
    • Polysaccharides is one of the biopolymers with high potential for use in synthesis of packaging material.
    • However, due to some drawbacks of polysaccharides, such as low mechanical properties, high water-solubility, and low barrier properties, they are not preferred.
    • Guar Gum, and Chitosan are polysaccharides extracted from guar beans and shells of crab and shrimps.
• Properties of the Film:
  
  • High water stability, high mechanical strength as well as excellent resistance towards harsh environmental conditions.
    
    • The fabricated cross-linked film is not easily soluble in water. As per scientists, it did not dissolve even after 240 hours.
  • It is highly water repellent or hydrophobic because of its high contact angle of 92.8º.
  • Water vapor permeability is low as compared to the film made only from chitosan.
    
    • Vapour permeability is a material's ability to allow a vapour (such as water vapour or, indeed any gas) to pass through it.
• Significance:
  
  • It is likely to help effectively deal with the menace of piling non-biodegradable packaging materials, including water and soda bottles.
    
    • Normally, Polymers have a wide variety of industrial and commercial uses but it is not biodegradable and hence poses a major challenge to the environment and earth’s ecosystem.

Source: PIB