Watch | Why Parties Split and Why We Should Worry: Gilles Verniers

A month after elections in West Bengal, the TMC is staring at total disintegration as MLAs and MPs pledge support to the BJP. Just last month 7 AAP MPs joined the BJP. This has raised questions on the failures of the Anti-Defection law, the BJP's use of power and resources to impose one-party dominance despite losing its majority in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Is this a symptom unique to Indian politics? Why is this moment in history different from the Congress years? With institutional capture laying bare the electoral process, in the 12th year of the Modi government, how can we describe this moment of the Indian democracy?

Gilles Verniers, political scientist and researcher at CERI, Sciences Po Paris tells The Wire's Sravasti Dasgupta why political parties splitting is worrisome for Indian democracy.