Varun Gandhi moves Bill in Lok Sabha to recall legislators for non-performance

Bharatiya Janata Party legislator Varun Gandhi on Tuesday moved a private member's Bill in the Lok Sabha that seeks to recall parliamentarians for non-performance. Gandhi moved the Representation of the People (Amendment) Bill, 2016, which proposed that the process to recall elected representatives can be triggered by a voter. They would need to file a petition with the Speaker of the House, signed by other voters in the constituency.

According to the Bill, MPs and MLAs can be recalled within two years of their being elected, if 75% of the voters in their constituency are



dissatisfied with their performance. “Logic and justice necessitate that if the people have the power to elect their representatives, they should also have the power to remove these representatives when they engage in misdeeds or fail to fulfil the duties,” Gandhi said.

After the petition is filed and authenticated, the Election Commission would have to verify the signatures on the petition. if a majority of the voters (three-fourth, according to PTI) vote to recall the legislator, the Speaker or EC would then have to have the seat vacated by the sitting MP or MLA.