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Electoral Politics
Fastracl« Revision
> Elections the process by which the citizens ofa democracy
select or choose their representatives and change them if
they wish to do so. Elections play a vital rote In democracy.
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People can choose who will form the government and
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©) toke major decisions and make taws.
> The following are the basic requirements of an election
conducted in a democratic country:
> Eachcitizenshould be able to choose and he/she should
have one vote and every vote should be of equal valve
> Parties and candidates should be free to contest
election and should offer some real choice to the
voters
> The choice should be offered at regular intervals and
elections must be held regularly after evory Few years.
> Elections should be conducted on a Free and Fair basis
where people con choose as they really wish,
> An electoral competition has many demarits. A sense of
disunity and factionalism develops In every locality. Also,
parties and candidates use dirty tricks, unfair means and
even put false allegations against one another.
> In spite of the above demerits, our Constitution makers
opted for Free electoral competition because It provides
incentives to political parties and leader. They know that
IF they raise Issues that people want to be ralsed, thelr
popularity and chances of victory will Increase in the next
clactions, But if thay fall to satisfy the voters with thelr
work, they will not be able to win again.
> In indla, elections for the Lok Sabha or Parliament are held
‘every Five years in our country at the same time and are
referred to as general elections, For Lok Sabha elections,
the country is divided into $43 constituencies.
> The representative elected from each constituency Is
Each state Is divided into a specific number of Assembly
Constituencies (Vidhan Sabha). The elected representative
of these constituencies is referred to as Member of
Legislative Assembly or an MLA.
> Each village or town Is Further divided into several wards
that are like constituencies, Each ward elects one member
‘ofthe village or the urban local body. These constituencies
are sometimes counted as seats,
> The Constitution makers have reserved constituencies for
the weaker sections so that they get a good chance to get
elected to the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies.
For Lok Sabha, 84 seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes
(SCs) and 47 for the Scheduled Tribes (ST).
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Some crinainals ond persons with unsound mind can
© be denied the right to vote, but only in rare situations.
> In many states, seats in rural (Panchayat) and urban
(municipalities and corporations) local bodies are now
reserved for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) as well. One-
third of the seats are reserved in rural and urban local
bodies for women candidates,
> In our country, al citizens aged 18 years and above can
vote in an election. Every citizen has the right to vote,
regardless of his or her caste, religion or gender,
> Prior to elections, a list of thase who are eligible to vote is
prepared and this list Is officially called the ‘Electoral Roll’
and Is commonly known as the ‘Voter's List’, Inthe last few
years, 0 new system of Election Photo Identity Cord (EPIC)
has been introducad. But the card Is not yet compulsory
for voting. For voting, the voters can show any other valld
ID proof; like driving licance, ration card or PAN card.
> In India, the minimum age For becoming a candidate in
elections Is 25 years. There are some other restrictions
‘on criminals, etc., but these apply in very extreme cases.
Every person who wishes to contest an election has to
fill. ‘nomination Form’ and give some money as ‘security
deposit.
> Political parties nominate their candidates who get the
party symbol and support. Party’s nomination is often
called ‘party ticket."
> A new system of declaration has been introduced from
the Supreme Court. Every candidate has to make a legal
declaration, giving detalls of:
> Serious criminal cases pending against the candidate
(if any),
> Detalls ofthe assets and labilties of the candidate and
his or her Family.
> Educational qualification ofthe candidate:
» The main purpose of election Is to give people a chance
to choose the representatives, the government and the
policies they prefer. Therefore, itisnecessarytohavea free ,
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FA slogan of Gorlbi Hatao' (Remove Poverty) in the Lok
)sabha election campaign of 1971.
‘open discussion about who is a better representative,
ch party will make a better government or what is a
d policy. This objective is Fulfilled through an election
‘campaign.
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The Congress Party led by Indira Gondhl gave the
No party or candidate can spend more than the limits
specified for the Lok Sabha election campaign and for
the Assembly Election campaign. For Lok Sabha election,
the expenditure can be between t $4 lakh to & 70 lakh
and for Assembly Election, it can be between @ 20 lakh to
@ 28 lakh. These limits are subject to change.
The Final stage of an election is the day when the voters
cast or poll thelr vote and when thelr votes are counted.
Earller voting was done by a ballot paper but nowadays,
Electronle Voting Machines (EVMs) are used to record
votes.
Once the polling is over, all the EVMs are sealed and taken
toa secure place,
> A Few days later, on a Fixed date, all the EVMs from a
constituency are opened and the votes secured by each
candidate are counted, The candidate who secures the
highest number of votes from a constituency is declared
elected.
A lot of unfair practices in electlons are reported by
newspapers and televisions, These can take the Fallowing
Forms:
> Inclusion of false names and exclusion of gonuine
names from the votors' list
> Misuse of government Facilities and officials by the
oiligen
ney Prac’
€) Multiple choice Questions y
QL. What was the promise Devi Lal made to the farmers
and small businessmen?
a. Government would provide free electricity to
them,
b. Government would provide free water to them,
¢ Government would walve the loans of them.
d. None of the above
Q2. A geographical area where the voters elect a
representative to the legislative bodies Is termed
ast
2. playing Field
© voter's area
b. electoral area
J. constituency
Q3. Elections held after the term of 5 years of Lok
Sabha are called:
‘a. Half-term elections
© Unit-etectians
b. General elections
d, Mid-way elections
©
> Excessive use of money by rich candidates and big
parties.
> Intimidation of voters and rigging on the polling day,
> The unfair practices are not on a scale to affect the very
purpose of elections. The elections in indla are conducted
ina democratic manner and thls Is ensured because of the
following factors:
> In our country elections are conducted by
‘an Independent and very powerful Election
Commission.
> Another way to check the quality of the election
process is to see whether people have participated
in it with enthusiasm or not, Over the last Firty
years, the turnout in Europe and North America has
declined. In India, the turnout has either remained
stable or has actually gone up.
> The final test of free and fair election is the
‘outcome itself. If the elections are not free or Fair,
the outcome always Favours the powerful. But in
Indla, this Is not true. The ruling parties routinely
{ose elections in india, both at the national and the
state level.
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Election Commission Is headed by a ‘Chief Election
Commissioner; appointed by the President of Indio.
> In some constituencies, a few candidates may win purely
‘on the basis oF money power ond unfair means. This
situation brings many limitations and challenges to tho
Indlan election procedure. It is due to these reasons that
citizens, social activists and organisations have been
demanding reforms in our elactoral system.
e Exercise
Q4. In how many constituoncies Is the country divided
for Lok Sabha olections?
a, 633 b 543
c. 545 868
5. Since 1982 to 1987, Haryana was ruled by which
political party?
a, Haryana Sangharsh Samiti
b. Bharatiya Janata Party
©. Congress Party
. Communist Party of India
6. Which one of the following is not a factor that
‘makes an election democratic?
a, There should be something to choose from.
b. Partles and candidates should be free to contest
elections
©. The cholce should not be offered at regular
Intervals.
d. The candidate preferred by the people should get
elected.