‘From 2016-20, 170 Cong MLAs switched party for elections’

Seven Rajya Sabha MPs left the Congress to join another party to contest polls. Representation pic

As many as 170 MLAs left the Congress to join other parties during the elections held between 2016 and 2020, while only 18 BJP legislators switched parties to contest the polls in this period, according to a new report by poll rights group Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). It said between 2016 and 2020, 182 of the 405 re-contesting MLAs, who switched political parties, joined the BJP, followed by 38 who joined the Congress and 25 who joined the Telangana Rashtra Samithi.

Five Lok Sabha MPs left the BJP to join other parties during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls while seven Rajya Sabha MPs left the Congress to join another party to contest elections between 2016-2020, the report said.

As many as 170 MLAs left the Congress to join other parties during the polls held in the period, while only 18 MLAs left the BJP to join another party to contest polls in this period, it added. "It is to be noted that the recent fall of governments in Madhya Pradesh, Manipur, Goa, Arunachal Pradesh and Karnataka State Assemblies were due to defections of their MLAs," the report said. Ten of the 16 re-contesting Rajya Sabha MPs who switched political parties joined the BJP.

18
No. of BJP MLAs who left the party from 2016-20

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