The 91st Constitutional Amendment Act, 2003 strengthened the Anti-Defection Law (10th Schedule) and imposed a cap on the size of the Council of Ministers at 15% of the total strength of the House.
Before the 91st Amendment, some state governments had 80–90 ministers for assemblies of 200-300 members — cabinets were so large they became unmanageable and expensive. The 15% cap directly addressed this dysfunction.
The 91st Amendment made two major changes:
Change 1 — Cap on Council of Ministers Size: The total number of Ministers (including the Prime Minister) in the Union Council of Ministers shall not exceed 15% of the total strength of the Lok Sabha (543 seats × 15% ≈ 81 ministers maximum).
Similarly, state cabinet size cannot exceed 15% of state assembly strength (minimum 12 ministers).
This was introduced because coalition governments were creating oversized cabinets to accommodate allies — leading to inefficiency and corruption.
Change 2 — Strengthening Anti-Defection Law: The original 10th Schedule (Anti-Defection Law, 1985) allowed a party split if at least 1/3rd of members defected together — this loophole was widely misused.
The 91st Amendment deleted the split provision entirely — now ANY defection (even a group) counts as defection and attracts disqualification.
The Anti-Defection Law (10th Schedule, 1985) disqualifies a member of Parliament/State Legislature if they:
The decision on disqualification is made by the Speaker of Lok Sabha / Chairman of Rajya Sabha.
While splits are banned, mergers are still allowed under the 10th Schedule: A group of at least 2/3rd of the party's members can merge with another party without attracting disqualification — but they must merge, not just join as a new faction.
15% of 543 (Lok Sabha seats) = approximately **81 ministers** (including the Prime Minister). This is the constitutional maximum for the Union Council of Ministers.
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