The bike will start whether the stand is up or down if it is in neutral. With it in gear and the clutch disengaged it will not start with the stand down. It will also cut the engine if the side stand is put down if the bike is in gear - this is the one that causes problems if the switch gets damaged.

You can remove/disconnect the switch. Just bear in mind that if you happen to have left the bike in gear and forget, when you try and start it on the sidestand it will end in tears!

__________________