Spectre of Elections
By Dhurjati Mukherjee
Elections are a continuing phase in Indian politics and are held as a process of legitimization of the political power to be acquired. In this scenario, for safeguarding the core values of a free and fair election, it is important to have a just and unbiased electoral process to ensure greater citizen participation.
However, there are certain challenges and issues that the electoral system has faced over the years. Trust and confidence of the citizens in the electoral system cannot be gained without addressing these issues (Election Commission of India, 2016). A discernible decline in the standards began and the distortion in its working appeared for the first time in the fifth General Elections in 1971 which multiplied several times in subsequent elections.
Analysts have found that the election process in our country is the root cause of political corruption. The issue of election reforms has been taken up by Parliament, the government, the judiciary, the media and the Election Commission on numerous occasions but very little has been done. It needs to be corrected at the societal level itself through education and awareness.
Meanwhile. this month elections are being held in Bihar, and next year will witness elections in West Bengal, Assam, Kerala and Tamil Nadu along with Pondicherry. In the northern and eastern part of the country, elections mean violence, false promises of political leaders, religious disharmony and caste-based politics. The whole spectre of elections has become more unhealthy with money and muscle power ruling and this trend has becoming worse year after year.
It has been found that promises made by political parties are seldom kept and this has been testified by common people when asked about their problems. Thus, the elections mean nothing for the common man or even for the lower middle class except for the fact that prices witness a rise after the results are announced. This is because even small businessmen and traders have to dish out money to political parties to fight the elections, not to speak of big corporate houses.
There are a few places where regional identities are still strong – West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and the North-East are examples in this context. In these places, state politics is dominated by regional parties. Moreover, issues related to Hindu supremacy were never so strong in the past due to caste plus minority appeasement. In recent years, Hindu-Muslim issues and associated politics continue to resonate with the voters due to the nature of campaigning. Even as the country becomes more homogenous on caste and regional identities, religious issues are gaining ground in current-day politics.
Though elections theoretically may be a part of the democratic process, it is only money power and muscle power that wins elections. This is very much true in the case of Bihar and West Bengal and some other states, mostly in the north. India cannot be said to follow a true democratic system and many analysts have called it a ‘managed democracy’. In fact, India’s rating in the democratic index has fallen due to various factors that do not allow the right to dissent and oppose government policies.
Bihar Assembly poll, which is now very much in the news, it can safely be said that the backwardness of the state will not improve whosoever comes to power. The elections are being fought with RJD and Congress on one side and the BJP-JD(U), on the other, both of which are financially very strong. The former does not have a coherent set of ideas aimed at transforming society that is embedded within an organisation, which is the apparatus that enacts the ideology through rolling political struggles.
There are possibly two parties in the state that have an organizational ideology – the BJP and the CPM. That is to say, an organizational structure which is built around mobilizing constituencies through participative political action. In the case of the RJD and the Congress as with the JD(U) what passes for ideology is just political rhetoric belted from loudspeakers to ferment sentiment. This is totally similar to Mamata Banerjee’s TMC in West Bengal and, in the latter case, false and mischievous promises are made.
As is evident in many states and also in Bihar, Bhumihars with less than 3 per cent of the population, have nearly the same representation as the extremely backward castes (EBC) who constitute 36 per cent of the population. The political scenario in the country is largely dominated by upper castes and, as such, there is very little concern for the poor and the ECS, both at the Centre and in the states.
The RJD exhibits an isolation from social reality. Yadavs constituting 14 per cent of the population, have received 36 per cent of the tickets. Even among Yadavs, it is found that landed aristocracy and business families have cornered the tickets. Data from the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) showed that between 2005 and 2020, MLAs/MPs of RJD had average declared assets of Rs 2.14 crores, comparable to the JD(U), the BJP and the Congress, highlighting the elite entrenchment. This happens to be a similar picture of political parties across the country.
The RJD and also the JD(U) have done very little for the poor and the marginalised sections and the caste factor remains a critical component of the forthcoming elections. However, it is necessary to mention that only the CPM. whose candidate roster comprises Dalits and backward castes along with its organizational strategy, is rooted in struggles over fair wages, land rights and labour.
Compared with Bihar and West Bengal, the performance of Tamil Nadu and Kerala is much better. In fact, Tamil Nadu is one of the most developed states and along with Kerala, both are way ahead on social infrastructure development. Education and health in these states receive high priority and this led Prashant Kishor, leader of newly formed Jan Suraaj in Bihar, to recently maintain that “the school bag is the way out of poverty”.
Another aspect of the election scenario that needs to be highlighted is that though it may be recorded that say 65 to 70 per cent of voters may have exercised their franchise, more than half are either not concerned or are unaware of the policies and pledges of the political party they have voted for. Moreover, very few are aware of the pledges made last time and how much of them have actually been implemented. This is due to lack of education and awareness. Unless awareness levels improve, voters may vote but the whole affair may just be a farce.
Political parties ruling in the states have been restoring to unethical practices and, as such, have been opposing the intensive revision of voter lists. This is indeed quite deplorable and a free and fair election is desirable throughout the country. That the political leaders do not care about the democratic process have been opposing this revision so that with the help of false voters they can win elections.
Finally, it needs to be emphasized that the intertwining of money and muscle power in politics is a pressing issue that challenges the very essence of democracy. Addressing these challenges requires a collective effort from citizens, political parties, and the government. By not promoting transparency, enforcing accountability, and fostering a culture of ethical politics is unfortunate and goes against the very tenets of democratic principles. There is a need to ensure that the voice of every citizen is heard, untainted by undue influences. — INFA