Which one of the following Constitutional Amendments has enormously strengthened the powers of the Speaker/Chairman of the Houses of the Parliament/State Legislatures?

The 52nd Constitutional Amendment Act of 1985, commonly known as the Anti-Defection Law, significantly enhanced the powers of the Speaker and Chairman of the Houses of Parliament and State Legislatures [2]. By adding the Tenth Schedule to the Constitution, it empowered the presiding officers to act as quasi-judicial authorities to decide on the disqualification of members on grounds of defection [2]. Paragraph 6 of the Tenth Schedule explicitly states that the decision of the Speaker or Chairman on such matters shall be final [4]. While the 61st Amendment focused on lowering the voting age [5] and the 44th Amendment aimed at restoring judicial review and nullifying distortions from the 42nd Amendment [3], only the 52nd Amendment granted presiding officers the critical power to determine the continued membership of legislators, thereby strengthening their control over the House .

Sources

1. [1] Indian Constitution at Work, Political Science Class XI (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 9: CONSTITUTION AS A LIVING DOCUMENT > Amendments through Political Consensus > p. 209
2. [2] Indian Polity, M. Laxmikanth(7th ed.) > Chapter 85: Anti-Defection Law > ICHAPTER~' 85 Anti-Defection Law > p. 597
3. [4] Indian Polity, M. Laxmikanth(7th ed.) > Chapter 82: Electoral Reforms > T ELECTORAL REFORMS l BEFORE 1996 > p. 582
4. [5] https://www.mea.gov.in/Images/pdf1/S10.pdf
5. [3] Indian Polity, M. Laxmikanth(7th ed.) > Chapter 92: World Constitutions > APPENDIX IV Constitutional Amendments at a Glance > p. 720