{"id":78231,"date":"2026-07-02T15:33:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-02T10:03:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=78231"},"modified":"2026-07-02T18:36:03","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T13:06:03","slug":"130th-constitution-amendment-bill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/02-07-2026\/130th-constitution-amendment-bill","title":{"rendered":"130th Constitution Amendment Bill"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/ Polity and Governance<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) examining the <strong>130th Constitution Amendment Bill <\/strong>is expected to adopt its report soon.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Background: <\/strong>The bill was introduced in 2025 and was subsequently referred to a <strong>Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) <\/strong>following intense opposition protests.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Major Features: <\/strong>The Bill provides for the removal of a minister if he\/she is accused of an offence <strong>punishable with five or more years of imprisonment,<\/strong> and has been <strong>arrested and detained for 30 consecutive days.<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>If the <strong>Prime Minister or a Chief Minister remains in custody for 30 consecutive days,<\/strong> they must resign; otherwise, they would automatically cease to hold office on the 31st day.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The removal can be directed by the President or Governor <\/strong>upon the advice of the Prime Minister or the Chief Minister, respectively, or automatically on the 31st day of detention.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>At present,<\/strong> ministers leave office through <strong>resignation, dismissal by the Prime Minister or Chief Minister, or disqualification<\/strong> following conviction under existing laws.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The proposed amendment introduces <strong>prolonged custody, rather than conviction, as a ground for vacating public office.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The provision is intended to <\/strong>protect the integrity of public office and ensure that individuals facing serious criminal proceedings do not continue in executive positions for extended periods.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Critics have argued that the Bill:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>May violate the presumption of innocence by linking removal from office to arrest rather than conviction.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Could allow misuse of investigative agencies for political purposes.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>May raise questions under the Constitution&#8217;s basic structure doctrine, particularly regarding democracy, federalism, and the rule of law.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Criminalisation of politics<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Criminalisation of politics<\/strong> refers to the growing participation of individuals with criminal backgrounds in electoral politics.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>A serious criminal charge includes<\/strong> offences where the maximum punishment is five years or more, or those that are non-bailable.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>In the Lok Sabha,<\/strong> the share of MPs facing serious criminal cases has more than doubled, from <strong>14% in 2009 to 31% in 2024<\/strong>.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>In the Assemblies,<\/strong> the share was <strong>29% in 2024<\/strong>, which accounts for more than <strong>1,200 MLAs.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Andhra Pradesh<\/strong> had the highest share of MLAs with serious criminal cases at <strong>56%<\/strong>, followed by <strong>Telangana (50%).<\/strong>\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Reasons of Criminalisation of politics<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Weak Disqualification Laws:<\/strong> The Representation of the <strong>People Act, 1951 (RPA) <\/strong>disqualifies candidates only after conviction. Since trials take years, candidates contest multiple elections before any judgment.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Money and Muscle Power:<\/strong> Candidates with financial resources and local influence are seen as \u201cwinnable\u201d candidates.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Low Voter Awareness: <\/strong>Affidavits disclose candidate details, but many voters remain unaware or vote on caste\/religious lines.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Party Complicity:<\/strong> Parties often justify fielding tainted candidates by citing \u201cpopularity\u201d and \u201celectoral chances.\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Judicial Delays:<\/strong> Frequent adjournments and politically motivated withdrawal of cases allow criminals to escape conviction.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Impact of Criminalisation of Politics<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Erosion of Democratic Values: <\/strong>It undermines the principle of free and fair elections and voters are left with restricted choices, weakening the spirit of representative democracy.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Corruption: <\/strong>The presence of criminal elements escalates<strong> electoral malpractices<\/strong> such as voter <strong>intimidation, booth capturing, and the use of black money<\/strong> in campaigns.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Decline of Public Trust: <\/strong>Repeated election of tainted representatives, lead to <strong>declining voter turnout<\/strong> and weakening people\u2019s faith in democratic institutions.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Distortion of Policy-Making:<\/strong> Elected representatives use political power to protect personal and criminal networks and divert policy-making away from public interest<strong>.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Key Committee Recommendations<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Indrajit Gupta Committee (1998) &amp; 2nd ARC (2007)<\/strong> recommended partial state funding of elections to curb the use of black money and reduce corruption.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution<\/strong> in its <strong>2002 <\/strong>report recommended measures to enhance the accountability of political parties, including the statutory audit of party expenses and the disclosure of candidates&#8217; assets and liabilities.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The Law Commission&#8217;s 244th Report (2014)<\/strong> recommended disqualifying politicians from contesting elections as soon as charges are framed against them for offenses that carry a maximum punishment of<strong> five years or more.<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The report specifically recommended <strong>expediting trials for sitting MPs and MLAs<\/strong> by establishing fast-track courts.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Supreme Court Interventions<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>In Lily Thomas v. Union of India (2013), <\/strong>the Court ruled that any sitting MP, MLA, or MLC would be <strong>immediately disqualified <\/strong>upon conviction for a crime with a sentence of <strong>two years or more.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>In<strong> Public Interest Foundation v. Union of India (2018),<\/strong> the Court directed political parties to publicize the criminal records of candidates, detailing the nature of offences and charges.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>In 2020, the Supreme Court of India<\/strong> ordered political parties to publish details of candidates with pending criminal cases on their websites, social media, and in newspapers, along with the reasons for their selection, <strong>within 48 hours <\/strong>of candidate selection.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Criminalisation of politics undermines democratic governance, weakens the rule of law, and erodes public trust in institutions.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Addressing it requires a combination of electoral reforms, speedy trials of cases against legislators, greater transparency in political funding, stronger internal democracy within political parties, and informed voter participation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/news\/national\/jpc-likely-to-retain-clause-on-removal-of-ministers-after-30-days-in-custody\/article71170428.ece\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>TH<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong><br \/>\nIn News<\/p>\n<p><\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">\n<p>The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) examining the 130th Constitution Amendment Bill is expected to adopt its report soon.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong><br \/>\nAbout<\/p>\n<p><\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"\t>\n<p>Background: The bill was introduced in 2025 and was subsequently referred to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) following intense opposition protests.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">\n<p>Major Features: The Bill provides for the removal of a minister if he\/she is accused of an offence punishable with five or more years of imprisonment, and has been arrested and detained for 30 consecutive days.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<p><a href=\" https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/02-07-2026\/130th-constitution-amendment-bill \" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-78231","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78231","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=78231"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78231\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":78234,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78231\/revisions\/78234"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=78231"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=78231"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=78231"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}