Elections are a central feature of democracy. For elections to express the will of the electorate, they must be ‘free and fair’. Regular, free and fair elections are the fundamental unmistakable indicia of democracy. The foundation of democracy is the people have the right to vote freely and fearlessly and thus rule through their elected representatives.
Indian Constitution under Article 324 provides that elections to be held periodically in a free and fair environment to choose the best representatives of general public to the country. But do Election Commission of India really held elections in such a manner? Do people use their franchise honestly and willingly? let me try to find put the answer of these questions.
The ongoing Parliamentary elections in Kashmir valley are held under the cover of 7.5 lac security personnel while marking more than 90% of polling station as Hyper Sensitive and voters are forced to use their Franchises. Closure of educational institutions prior to poll day is a another example which speaks volumes against the free and free elections. In short, democracy is deemed to have succumbed.
Free & Fair elections means the peaceful and favourable atmosphere, where electorates willingly choose their representatives without any threat. Elections must be free from any threat, security cover, note sharing, blackmailing, compulsion and use of communal voices. And Fair from corruption, nepotism, favourism, EVM hijacking, etc. Free and fair elections are limited to mere articles and are never implemented on ground. India in general and in Kashmir valley in particular people suffer from election psyche.
India is estimated to have 1.30 billion population, but do you know how many use their right to franchise? The national average of poll remains still at question mark.
There are many elections myths which people follow during elections. These are; it is mandatory to vote, to avoid it is to commit a sin, some people think that they need development so they vote, but do they get development after elections? Some people need peace so they also vote. Some voters say that they don’t have a candidate of their choice so they don’t vote.
The 2019 General Lok Sabha elections are going to be one of the most expensive election in the world. This time the Lok Sabha elections will cost an unprecedented Rs 50,000 crore, a 40% jump from 2014 polls. To simplify this, India would spend around $8 (Rs 556 INR) per voter in a country where about 60 percent of the population lives on around $3 (Rs 208 INR) a day.
It has been a bad few years for Indian democracy. At the same time, corruption remains a significant problem, and there is evidence that the abuse of office is becoming more common.
‘Free’ means that all those entitled to vote have the right to be registered and to vote and must be free to make their choice. An election is considered ‘free’ when you can decide whether or not to vote and vote freely for the candidate or party of your choice without fear or intimidation. A ‘free’ election is also one where you are confident that who you vote for remains your secret.
‘Fair’ means that all registered political parties have an equal right to contest the elections, campaign for voter support and hold meetings and rallies. This gives them a fair chance to convince voters to vote for them. A fair election is also one in which all voters have an equal opportunity to register, where all votes are counted, and where the announced results reflect the actual vote totals.
Mere conducting of elections periodically doesn’t prove that we are republic and have an effective democracy. It is the way elections are held, the quality of people elected, their performances that make our democracy effective. In current scenario, the widespread disillusion in our political system is well visible. The poverty, unemployment, illiteracy levels indicate the inefficiency of our political system. Even after 60 years of our independence, our people suffer from lack of basic amenities in life. If a law is passed as to those with criminal and corruption charges are to be disqualified then around 93 MPs and 10 ministers in Man Mohan Singh’s ministry stand disqualified. This is appalling! We can’t put the entire blame for current state of affairs on our political system because it is not functioning in vacuum. The society has share in the blame. The behaviour of our political system is its response to the society and to reform our political system, we need to reform society and its subsystems. This is where electoral reform becomes important.
The Author is a Freelance Writer and can be reached at sahilshabir@rocketmail.com
