elections. The universal adult franchise was adopted as the basis of elections

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1 Speech delivered by Shri Navin B. Chawla at INCAA 2nd Indian Anthropological Congress Human Development: Evolution and Vision at University of Pune on February 2007 After attaining Independence in 1947, India adopted its Constitution in 1950 proclaiming the country as a Sovereign, Democratic, Republic. A parliamentary democracy on the Westminster model was established and an independent Election Commission set up to ensure regular, free and fair elections. The universal adult franchise was adopted as the basis of elections to the Parliament and State Legislatures. However, doubts were expressed at that time as to whether the democratic system would work in a country where 84 per cent of the population was still illiterate. Time has set these doubts to rest by the manner in which the Indian electorate has voted since Independence. The Indian electorate has shown not only their firm belief in the democratic structure and institutions that the Constitution has provided but also their political maturity by smooth transfer of power from one party to another, from one Government to another.

2 There is recognition of India as a stable, vibrant democracy characterized by regular, free and fair elections in our three tier set-up, i.e., the national level, state level and at the local levels of self-government (known generically as Panchayat Raj institutions). The size and diversity of the country, the logistic and administrative requirements, the contestation and participation make Indian elections largest exercise of its kind in the entire world. There are 543 Lok Sabha (the lower House of Parliament) constituencies, 245 seats in the Rajya Sabha (the Upper House of Parliament) of which 233 are elected and 12 nominated, and 4120 Assembly Constituencies spread over 35 States and Union Territories. Apart from this, there are nearly 235,000 Gram Panchayats, over 6000 Intermediate Panchayats and 537 District Panchayats for which elections are organised and held under the supervision of the respective State Election Commissioners of each State. A study by Prof. Yogendra Yadav has shown that on a rough estimate the number of elected representatives from the national to the village level is no less than three million. Article 324 of the Constitution Article 324 of the Constitution of India bestows on the Election Commission of India the superintendence, direction and control of the conduct of all elections to Parliament and legislature of every state, and all the elections to the offices of President and Vice-President on the Election 2

3 Commission of India. This Article of the Constitution of India is unique in as much as it provides special powers during the entire electoral process making the Election Commission supreme in all matters relating to the actual conduct of elections. Elections, as per constitutional provisions, have been held timely in every instance in the entire history of post-independence India, reinforcing the impartial and neutral image of the Commission. Fourteen general elections to Lok Sabha, the House of the People of Indian Parliament, and more than 300 general elections to the State Legislative Assemblies have firmly established democratic values and practices in the country and made it one of the best democracies in the modern world, apart from being the largest. Indian democracy is deep rooted and assures stability and peaceful change of Governments. If we look around and compare the democratic functioning in India with other nations, who also got freedom from foreign rule more or less around the same time, India, in the worlds of our Supreme Court is indeed an oasis of Democracy. The ECI This Commission with a skeleton staff of merely 300 people at its headquarters ensures this operation with the help of Chief Electoral Officers posted in the States and Union Territories in a decentralized fashion. 3

4 Though, the Chief Electoral Officers are notified by the Election Commission, they are officers of the States concerned and it has to be ensured that they are free from influences of the ruling parties in the State while discharging their duties as Chief Electoral Officers. The officers at the field level, who discharge duties of District Election Officers, Returning Officers, Electoral Registration Officers, Presiding Officers etc. during the preparation and conduct of poll in the field are also the State or Central Government officials. To keep an eye that they perform their duties in an impartial and non-partisan manner is by no means an easy task. Not that these officers and officials are partisan, nevertheless, it has to be made evident to all players including political parties and candidates that they work impartially. It is one of the major tasks the Election Commission of India has to perform. The role of about 2000 election Observers who are senior government officers specially and carefully chosen and deployed by the Election Commission to enforce the model code of conduct by political parties and to supervise electoral management at each constituency level, cannot be over emphasized. The inputs and feedback given by the candidates, political parties, media, NGOs, the Election Observers and even the little voter from all areas of our vast country amidst political volatility had to be fruitfully utilised and consequent action taken in a very short span 4

5 of time by the Commission with speed and efficacy to ensure the credibility of the system. The Commission is responsible for conducting elections to the office of the President, Vice-President, both the Houses of Indian Parliament and State Legislatures. The Commission registers various political parties and decides cases relating to their split and merger. It also advises the President and the Governor of a State in the matters of disqualification of Members of Parliament and Members of the Legislative Assemblies respectively. The elections to local bodies are held under the supervision and control of the respective State Election Commissioner. The decisions of the Commission can be challenged only in High Courts or Supreme Court. The election of Vice-President and President can be challenged only in the Supreme Court. No Court, however, can interfere in the conduct of elections once the election process has been set into motion by the Commission with the announcement of elections. At the time of elections, the Election Commission becomes the supreme body for adjudicating various matters relating to elections. If any person has any grievance against any decision taken by the Commission during the election process, he can go to the Court in the form of election petition only after the declaration of results. 5

6 The Election Commission of India is unique as it does not consult the Government of the day even for drawing the schedule of elections. The Commission makes its own assessment and ensures that a level playing field is provided to various political parties. The Commission is assisted by the Chief Electoral Officers in the States. Each State has one Chief Electoral Officer who is a senior civil servant. The District Election Officers are responsible for all electoral matters within their jurisdiction. India today has six recognized national parties, 45 recognized state parties and 730 unrecognized registered parties. There has been a steady rise in the number of state and regional parties and these days coalition governments are more in vogue. The country has approximately 687 million electors who poll at around 700,000 polling stations. The Commission engages nearly 4 million civil officials and around 9 million security personnel on the poll day of any Lok Sabha election. The exercise is mammoth. All stake-holders show great enthusiasm for participating in Indian elections. Despite the fact that there is no compulsory voting, the voter turn out on an average has been around 58 to 60+ percent. Of course, regional, rural and urban variations remain. The average voting in rural areas is generally higher than the urban pockets. General Elections,

7 The electoral management in India is an operation of an amazing scale. Elections 2004 extended to nearly 700,000 polling stations spread over 35 States and Union Territories for electing 543 representatives to the Lower House (Lok Sabha) and 697 representatives to four State Assemblies of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Orissa and Sikkim. It was a managerial challenge of stupendous nature. All poll arrangements were required to be done in a short period of time at an astronomical scale. Mobilization of over one million Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), their checking, repair, provision of security safeguards, printing of the list of candidates and fixing it on these machines, is by no means a small or ordinary operation. Further, training of election personnel nearly four million in number, promoting awareness among millions of electors in the use of these machines for exercising the voting right through print and electronic media, slides shows, films and actual demonstration as well as hands on familiarization in market places, polling stations, villages etc. before the poll, involved a massive operation on a gigantic scale. Added to this was the meticulous planning of deployment of Central Para Military Forces in sensitive polling stations, appointment of senior officers as Election Observers in all Parliamentary Constituencies and Special Observers in electorally sensitive states and inter district movement of polling officials in various polling stations so as to impart a high degree of fairness in electoral management. In a society where 7

8 a large number of people are still illiterate and economically backward from diverse social backgrounds, the conduct of elections assumed complex dimensions. The Model Code of Conduct The disposal of innumerable complaints received with regularity on daily basis against the ruling parties at the centre and the states as also against other parties during the election period forms a major task during the campaign period and also on the poll and counting days. These complaints, received from various sources like the media (both print and electronic), the members of public, the political parties and candidates have to be attended to in a short period of time to inspire the requisite confidence. If there is delay, the complaints become meaningless. Similarly, complaints on the poll day regarding some malpractices in a remote polling station have to be addressed within an hour or so and much before the close of poll, which leaves a very short reaction time. Thanks to the improved communication facilities now available, it is possible to attend to such complaints within an hour of them being received, barring geographically hostile areas or either due to terrain or weather. Mobilization of communication network to address these complaints offers a great challenge to the Indian Election Commission in management of its elections. Similarly decisions relating to repolling in some polling stations on the basis of reports received from observers and 8

9 Chief Electoral Officers have to be taken within 24 to 48 hours so as not to affect the counting on counting day. Truly, the last Parliament Elections in India was the biggest management experiment and an awesome management challenge which are beyond any conventional management text book. It is evident from the size and speed of the electoral operation in India that the normal legal system cannot keep pace with the requirements of the job. India has devised a novel method to deal with this problem. An agreement signed by different political parties in 1960s to regulate their own conduct during election campaign has been used by the Election Commission to create a level playing field amongst the contesting candidates and political parties. This agreement between the parties had been used by the Election Commission to regulate behaviour of political parties during elections without going through the formalities of legal proceedings. This document known as the Model Code of Conduct for the guidance of political parties and candidates has now received backing of various pronouncements from apex court of India conferring vast powers to the Election Commission of India to deal with situations arising at the time of elections. In my opinion, this code is a very effective tool in disciplining the contesting candidates and political parties during their electoral campaign and has been fully used during the recent elections. 9

10 In a plural society the institutional measures that provide for political acceptance, accommodation and affirmation of diversity, underwrite its political unity and stability. India s track record in this is remarkable. The source of many of such stabilising and inclusive institutional measures can be traced to the Indian Constitution, aptly described as a `basic multicultural document. While Institutions may be created, unless they continually subserve the larger goal of their creation by meeting the challenges squarely, they can become moribund in no time, become merely forms without substance. Electoral Rolls In India electoral rolls are revised with respect to 1 st January ever year. This exercise is undertaken to include all those who become eligible for exercising their franchise on that day. The revision of electoral rolls can be intensive or summary in nature. While during intensive revision a houseto-house survey is conducted to enumerate electors, during summary revision, eligible electors are expected to file their claims for additions in the offices of Electoral Registration Officers and a large number of designated locations. The electoral rolls in the country have been completely computerized and now the effort is to prepare electoral rolls with photographs. The new initiative is a measure to curb the bogus voting. 10

11 Electoral rolls with photographs have already come into existence in the States of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Rajasthan, Tripura, Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Status of photo roll as on August 2007 is annexed as Annexure A ). To increase the accuracy of the electoral rolls, the Commission has started displaying the rolls in the post-offices and readying them in the meetings of Resident Welfare Associations, Village level Local Bodies, etc. Identification has been made mandatory for the electors at the time of poll. The electors are required to identify themselves through the electoral photo identity card issued by the Commission, or if the EPIC is not given, through any one of the alternative documents prescribed by it. The coverage under the electoral photo identity card (EPIC) in the country is per cent (Status for the progress of Elector Photo Identity Card up to March, 2007 is annexed as Annexure B ). Effort is being made to issue EPICs to all electors at the earliest. The electoral rolls are made available at the offices of Electoral Registration Officers, polling stations, the local bodies offices. We are now experimenting to place these rolls in the post offices as well. The process of claims and objections has been amply improved and standard forms are prescribed which are made freely available to eligible persons to file claims and objections. These forms are printed in newspapers which can be photocopied or hand written and submitted to the designated locations 11

12 including now the post offices. The Commission is also providing facilities for enrollment of electors online through internet. Fidelity of electoral rolls is the fundamental prerequisite for a free and fair election. If the electoral rolls are flawed, no effort can guarantee the fairness of the outcome. Non-removal of the names of dead voters and shifted voters undermines the fidelity of the electoral rolls. This provides scope for electoral malpractices like impersonation. As there is a political axe to grind, the possibilities of political parties and other interest groups undermining the fidelity of the rolls through their commissions of stuffing or omissions of calculated silence abound. The caste system of India has its own implications on electoral politics. In certain areas known for caste conflicts, the rolls risk being manipulated. In States that share International Border with Bangladesh the possibility of illegal immigrants, or non-citizens, being enrolled is an area of concern. In multi lingual constituencies the need for printing electoral rolls in more than one language is essential. In the areas with ethno-linguistic strife, it is a challenge to counter effectively the politically engineered inclusions and exclusions. The linguistic plurality of India is defined by about 2000 different mother tongues classifiable under five different language families. The 12

13 Constitution already recognizes 22 major languages as official languages. Language is therefore a sensitive issue in multi-linguistic India. The State Reorganisation Act, 1956 re-organized the boundaries of India s States. Linguistic homogeneity was the guiding principle for redrawing these boundaries. However, on account of the large number of prevalent languages, a certain amount of language overlap, along with multilinguilism, exists within the State boundaries. This is especially true in the borders of the States. The electoral authorities sensitively recognize this reality. During the last general elections in Assam while most of the Constituencies had overlap of languages to the rolls printed in Assamese, the lingua franca of the State, there were constituencies where the rolls had to be printed in Bengali, as has been the practice. Similarly the State of Tamil Nadu had rolls in Tamil, Kannada, Telugu and Malayalam; Kerala had the rolls in Malayalam and in Tamil. Even in the tiny Union Territory of Puducherry, the rolls in some parts had to be printed in languages such as Telugu and Malayalam. In Uttar Pradesh, the most populous State within the Indian Union, there are districts where the rolls have to be printed in Urdu while in other districts the rolls are printed in Hindi. 13

14 Photo Rolls Photo rolls were introduced on an experimental basis in 46 out of 294 constituencies of the State of West Bengal. The issue of Elector Photo Identification Card (EPIC) was maximized and the coverage touched nearly 95%. For the first time the Commission made it compulsory that voters issued with EPIC must vote only using EPIC. We allowed the use of other alternative identification documents only to the non-epic voters. Even for them the Commission made an option of using non-epic voter identification certificate issued by the election machinery as an identification document. EVMs Though, the Election Commission of India has used Electronic Voting Machines in a number of State elections and on a limited scale in parliamentary elections, it was for the first time that EVMs were used in all the polling stations during Lok Sabha Election, 2004 as well as the State Legislative Assemblies of Sikkim, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Orissa. On the one hand, the Commission was grappling with the problem of procurement and preparation of EVMs, training of officials and voters etc. at the scale given above and on the other hand, it was facing a number of queries about the reliability of the machine itself. Various intellectuals, media persons and political parties came forward alleging possible 14

15 manipulations of these machines. To allay the fears of the political parties and candidates and to show to the media and intellectuals that the machine is manipulation proof was a major concern the Election Commission had to address during 2004 Lok Sabha elections. Right up to the district or subdistrict level, the functioning of the machine had to be demonstrated and the security safeguards provided for in these machines had to be explained to the representatives of the political parties, the media, NGOs etc. to establish credibility of the EVMs. The fact that the credibility of these machines was cleared by a Committee of distinguished and independent technical men, and that the use of these machines which was challenged up to Supreme Court, which cleared the use of these machines after the Court was satisfied about the machines, had to be convincingly communicated to the public. The final outcome of the election within a short period on the counting day and its acceptance by all has finally proved that the Commission has been able to allay the fears some people had about the machine. Election Management The electoral management in India is marked by the complete transparency at the time of nomination, conduct of elections as well declaration of results. Copies of the affidavits containing information such as educational qualification of the candidates, assets and liabilities of the 15

16 candidates and dependent family members, criminal record of convictions and pending cases in Court, outstanding dues to Government filed by the candidates at the time of nomination as per Judgment of the Supreme Court based on the Right to Information to which the voters are entitled are widely disseminated among the public through the media, the NGOs, the election watch groups as well as by placing the same on the internet. The process of receiving and scrutiny of nomination is made amply transparent and the interested parties can raise objections if any and the same is disposed of by a speaking order. The candidates and their agents are involved in various processes with a view to ensure credibility in the system. In sensitive areas, video cameras are extensively used by observers to keep a watch on the candidates expenditure as well as their resorting to any questionable behaviour. On the day of poll, polling agents of the candidates are posted in every polling station, who can watch the process of election and raise their objections, if the due process is not being followed by the electoral machinery. At the time of counting of votes also, candidates are authorized to appoint their counting agents to protect their interest. The Indian elections have witnessed use of high-tech gadgets during election campaigns in the recently held elections. SMS messages were sent to the electors and electronic mails were used to solicit votes for parties and candidates. Appeal to vote for a particular party or candidate were also made 16

17 by using voice mail and through running welcome messages on telephone. s and faxes were used by candidates to send their complaints also to the Commission. To meet the challenges posed by use of technology, the Commission has made extensive use of IT. All the electoral rolls are computerized. Different States prepare software for printing of rolls in their state languages including in English in some states. Electors Photo Identity Cards are printed by using digitized images which are now being utilised in printing the electoral rolls with photographs. The Commission has taken up the preparation of polling station area maps through GIS, and also printing of electoral rolls with photographs. On line registration of voters is also being refined and strengthened and hopefully this facility will be extended through out the country very soon. The Commission has created a website, namely, on which all the electoral laws and rules have been hosted for information of the public, research scholars and the media. All the election results since 1952 have also been placed on the website. Election results are placed on the counting day as the counting progresses invoking a lot of interest by the netizens on the counting day. In the last Lok Sabha elections, the 17

18 Commission s website had nearly 14 million hits which shows the interest the Election Commission s website invokes amongst the internet users. As per the Supreme Court of India s decision, all officials that perform election or election related duties come under the disciplinary control of the Commission since the time of announcement of elections. The Commission watches the conduct of officials very closely. It orders their removal in case they are found wanting in their conduct. The Commission keeps an eye over the conduct of officials, candidates and political parties through its Observers. Senior civil servants are appointed as Observers by the Commission to oversee fairness of the elections. While General Observers keep an eye on the general conduct of elections, Expenditure Observers keep account of expenditure made by the candidates and parties. The law provides a ceiling for expenditure that can be made by any individual candidate in an election. Till recently, all expenditure made by the family and friends of the candidate was exempt from the ceiling. But after the intervention of the Election Commission, law has been amended and now all expenditure made by family and friends becomes part of candidate s expenditure. However, the expenditure incurred on the visits of specified number of political leaders (40 in case or recognized parties and 20 in case of unrecognized parties) is exempted from the ceiling. The 18

19 expenditure incurred by the political parties is also not clubbed with candidate s expenditure. The Observers also ensure enforcement of Model Code of Conduct, a unique instrument in Indian democracy to provide the level playing field. As per this code, the Government of the day is prohibited from utilizing the government machinery for furthering the cause of their political party(ies). The Government cannot announce new schemes, undertake new recruitment, transfer officials after the declaration of elections by the Commission. The ministers cannot undertake official journeys and hold official meetings in the areas where elections have been declared. They also cannot meet officials enegaged in election work. The code regulates conduct of meetings and processions. The Commission views violation of the code very seriously. The Commission increases or decreases the number of observers depending upon sensitivities involved in the election. Criminalization One such area of serious concern is the growing criminalisation in politics. Statistics compiled by an NGO, namely, Association of Democratic Rights, reveal that in the General Elections to Lok Sabha, 2004, out of 3182 candidates surveyed, 518, i.e., per cent cutting across all major political parties and criminal antecedents. Strictly, as per law, disqualification to contest an election arises only after conviction. But due 19

20 to the lengthy legal procedures, persons who have been charged with grave and heinous offices, remain free to contest till they are convicted and their appeals are finally disposed of. Thus, the existing legal provisions have been found inadequate to meet this menace. As a part of its electoral reforms proposals, the Election Commission has suggested that any person, who is accused of serious criminal offences and where the court is, prima facie, satisfied about his involvement in the crime and consequently framed charges against him, should not be allowed to contest an election till he is cleared of such charges by the court. In any case, this issue is being given serious consideration at the level of political parties, and civil society should debate the issue to provide an adequate legal frame to check this trend. The political parties, in the meantime, could follow a self-evolved code to deny tickets for contesting elections to the people with criminal background. Integral to criminalisation in politics is the role of muscle-power and antisocial elements during elections. Role of Money Power Another area of serious concern is the role of money power and the associated subversion of the democratic process on account of unchecked flow of funds for political campaign and elections. Despite monetary ceilings that have been prescribed for the expenditure that can be incurred by any candidate during the elections, use of money can only be described as 20

21 very excessive and lavish. Certain loopholes still exist in our laws particularly as there is no ceiling on the expenditure that can be incurred by the political parties. This issue along with that of state funding of elections also needs to be considered and debated for a satisfactory solution to minimize the role of money power in elections. Conclusion Conducting elections in India is not an easy task keeping in view the social milieu of the nation. India is a multi-cultural, multi-lingual, multireligious and a caste-ridden country