CLASS: IX

DEMOCRATIC POLITICS
ELECTORAL POLITICS: PART IV
Saudamini Dei

1 INDEPENDENT ELECTION COMMISSION:

ˆ In our country elections are conducted by an independent and very powerful Election
Commission.

ˆ It enjoys the same kind of independence that Judiciary enjoys.

ˆ The Chief Election Commissioner is appointed by the President of India.

ˆ Once appointed, the CEC is not answerable to the President or the Government.

ˆ If the ruling party or government does not like what commission does, it is impossible
for the government to remove the CEC.

ˆ The Election commission of India enjoys wide ranging Powers.

ˆ Election Commission takes all the decisions regarding the conduct and control of elec-
tions from the announcement of elections to the declaration of results.

ˆ It implements model code of conduct and punishes the party or the candidate who
violates it.

ˆ The Election Commission can issue some guidelines to be followed by Government to

prevent the misuse of Governmental power to enhance its chances to win elections.

ˆ When on election duty, government officers work under the control of Election commis-
sion and not the government.

ˆ If the Election Commission comes to know that polling was not fair in some booths or
even an entire constituency, they order a re-poll.

2 POPULAR PARTICIPATION:
ˆ One way to check the quality of the election process is to see whether people participate
with enthusiasm in election or not.

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 ˆ People’s Participation in election is usually measured by voter turnout figures. Turnout
indicates the per cent of eligible voters who actually cast their vote. Over the last 50
years, the turnout in Europe and North America has declined. But in India it has
either remained stable or gone up.

ˆ In India the poor, illiterate and underprivileged people vote in large proportion as
compared to rich and privileged sections.

ˆ Common people in India attach too much importance to election. They feel that
through elections they can bring pressure on political parties to adopt measures favourable
to them.

ˆ The interest of voters in election related activities has been increasing over the years.

3 ACCEPTANCE OF ELECTION OUTCOME:

ˆ The ruling parties lose elections in India both at the national and state level.

ˆ In the USA, an incumbent or ‘sitting’ elected representative rarely loses election. But
in India, half of the MPS and MLAs lose elections.

ˆ Candidates who spend a lot of money on buying votes and those with known criminal
connections often lose elections. The electoral outcomes are usually accepted as all
people’s verdict by the defeated party.

4 CHALLENGES TO FREE AND FAIR ELECTIONS:

ˆ Candidates and parties with lot of money may not be sure of their success, but they
enjoy advantage over smaller parties and independent candidates.

ˆ Sometimes, the criminal candidates have been able to push out others from electoral
race to secure a ticket from a major party.

ˆ Some families tend to dominate political parties. Tickets are distributed to the friends
and relatives of those families.

ˆ Elections offer very little choice to voters as the policies of major parties are quite
similar to each other.

ˆ Small parties and independent candidates suffer a huge disadvantage compared to big-
ger parties.