Shillong: Eight United Democratic Party legislators joined the BJP in New Delhi, leaving the party with only four members in the 60-seat Meghalaya Assembly. The move pushed the BJP from two seats to 10. The departing MLAs are Lahkmen Rymbui, Kyrmen Shylla, Olan Sing Suin, Mathew Beyondstar Kurbah, Mayralborn Syiem, Pius Marwein, Synshar Kupar Roy Lyngdoh Thabah, and Balajied Kupar Synrem.
The group represents exactly two-thirds of the UDP legislature party. This ratio sits at the center of a brewing legal dispute. While Paragraph 4 of the Tenth Schedule allows for merger protections, the Supreme Court ruled in Subhash Desai vs Principal Secretary, Governor of Maharashtra, that the two-thirds threshold applies only to the legislature party, not the entire political organization. The court noted, "The Speaker is the authority to decide Tenth Schedule petitions in the first instance and must do so within a reasonable time."
Disqualification petitions now fall to the Speaker. Under the Meghalaya Legislative Assembly (Disqualification on Ground of Defection) Rules, 1988, members get a formal chance to reply before any final ruling. Legal experts remain split on whether the numerical threshold alone grants immunity. Courts will likely review the Speaker's eventual decision to see if the switch meets formal merger requirements.
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