(1) Subject to the 5[provisions of sections 3A, 3B and 4], a councillor or a member, belonging to any political party, shall be disqualified for being such councillor or member,
(a) if he has voluntarily given up his membership of such political party; or
5[(b) if he votes or abstains from voting in, or intentionally remains absent from any meeting of the Municipal Corporation, Municipal Council, Town Panchayat, Zilla Panchayat or Taluk Panchayat, contrary to any direction Issued by the political party to which he belongs or by any person or authority authorised by it in this behalf without obtaining the prior permission of such party, person or authority and such voting, abstention or absence has not been condoned by such political party, person or authority within fifteen days from the date of voting or such abstention or absence;]
Explanation. For the purposes of this sub-section,
(a) a person elected as a councillor, or as the case may be, a member, shall be deemed to belong to the political party, if any, by which he was set up as a candidate for election as such councillor or member;
6[(b) a person elected as a councillor or as the case may be, a member, otherwise than as a candidate set up by a political party shall be deemed to belong to the political party of which he becomes a member before the expiry of six months from the date of commencement of his term of office, or in the case of a councillor or member whose term of office has commenced on or before the date of commencement of the Karnataka Local Authorities (Prohibition of Defection) (Amendment) Act, 1995 within six months from such date.]
(2) An elected councillor, or as the case may be, a member, who has been elected as such, otherwise than as a candidate set up by a political party shall be disqualified for being a councillor or, as the case may be a member if he joins a political party 7[after expiry of six months from the date of commencement of his term of office, or in the case of a councillor or member whose term of office has commenced on or before the date of commencement of the Karnataka Local Authorities (Prohibition of Defection) (Amendment) Act, 1995, after expiry of six months from such date]
8[(3) xxx]
(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in the foregoing provisions of this section, a person who on the commencement of this Act, is a councillor shall,
(a) where he was a member of a political party immediately before such commencement, be deemed for purposes of sub-section (1) to have been elected as a councillor as a candidate set up by such political party;
(b) in any other case, be deemed to be an elected councilor who has been elected as such otherwise than as a candidate set up by any political party for the purpose of sub-section (2).
9[3-A. Disqualification on the ground of defection not to apply in case of split. Where a councillor or a member makes a claim that he and any other members of his political party constitute the group representing a faction which has arisen as a result of a split in his political party and such group consists of not less than one-third of the members of such political party,
(a) he shall not be disqualified under sub-section (1) of section 3 on the ground,
(i) that he has voluntarily given up his membership of his political party; or
(ii) that he has voted or abstained from voting in, or intentionally remained absent from, any meeting of the Municipal Corporation, Municipal Council, Town Panchayat, Zilla Panchayat or Taluk Panchayat contrary to any direction issued by the political party to which he belongs or by any person or authority authorised by it in this behalf, without obtaining in any case, the prior permission of such political party, person or authority and such voting or abstention or absence has not been condoned by such political party, person or authority within fifteen days from the date of voting or such abstention or absence; and
(b) from the time of such split, such faction shall be deemed to be the political party to which he belongs for the purpose of sub-section (1) of section 3 and to be his political party for the purpose of this section.
3-B. Disqualification on the ground of defection not to apply in case of merger. (1) A councillor or a member shall not be disqualified under sub-section (-1) of section -3, where his political party merges with another political party and he claims that he and any other members of his political Party,
(a) have become members of such other political party, or as the case may be, of a new political party formed by such merger; or
(b) have not accepted the merger and opted to function as a separate group,
and from the time of such merger, such other political party or new political party or group as the case may be, shall be deemed to be the political party to which he belongs for the purposes of sub-section (1) of section 3 and to be his political party for the purposes of this section.
(2) for the purposes of sub-section (1) of this section,
(a) the merger of the political party of a councillor or a member shall be deemed to have taken place if, and only if, not less than two-thirds of the members of the political party concerned have agreed to such merger:
(b) the expression such other political party and new political party shall include a political party whether such political party has been recognised or not by the Election Commission of India as a National party or a State party in the State of Karnataka under the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968.]10