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Grey Birthday for the Election Commission of India
Context:
On June 17, 1949, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, while introducing the constitutional provision to establish the Election Commission of India (ECI), warned against executive interference in electoral processes.
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- He emphasised the sanctity of electoral rolls as fundamental to democracy, asserting that their independence must be protected as a fundamental right.
- On January 25, as India marks the 75th anniversary of the ECI—also observed as National Voters Day—concerns over its effectiveness in safeguarding electoral integrity persist, raising doubts about its commitment to the vision of India’s founding leaders.
Election Commission of India (ECI)
It is a constitutional authority responsible for administering elections in the country.
Overview:
- Establishment: The ECI was established on January 25, 1950, and is celebrated as National Voters’ Day.
- Headquarters: Located at Nirvachan Sadan, New Delhi.
- Composition: The ECI consists of a Chief Election Commissioner and two other Election Commissioners. This multi-member structure was reinstated in 1993 after being briefly reverted to a single-member body.
Powers and Functions: The ECI operates under Article 324 of the Indian Constitution and has several critical responsibilities:
- Conducting Elections: The ECI oversees elections for the Lok Sabha (House of the People), Rajya Sabha (Council of States), State Legislative Assemblies, and the offices of the President and Vice President.
- Electoral Roll Management: It prepares and periodically updates electoral rolls, ensuring that all eligible voters are registered.
- Election Schedule: The ECI decides the schedules for elections, including dates for nominations, voting, counting, and results announcement.
- Political Party Recognition: It grants recognition to political parties and allocates election symbols, ensuring fair competition among candidates.
- Model Code of Conduct: The ECI issues a Model Code of Conduct for political parties and candidates to maintain fairness during elections.
- Dispute Resolution: It acts as a quasi-judicial body to settle disputes concerning political party recognition and election symbols.
- Monitoring Campaign Expenditure: The ECI sets limits on campaign expenditures for candidates and monitors compliance.
Alarming Trends in Maharashtra
- Dr. Ambedkar’s warnings about electoral roll manipulation resonate with recent developments in Maharashtra’s 2024 State elections.
- The ECI reported 9.7 crore registered voters for the election, exceeding the central government’s Health Ministry estimate of 9.54 crore adults in the state.
- This anomaly suggests a voter enrollment rate nearing or exceeding 100% of the adult population—a first for Maharashtra.
- The surge in voter registration occurred in just six months between the 2024 Lok Sabha and the State elections, during which 48 lakh new voters were added to the rolls.
- In stark contrast, only 32 lakh new voters had been added during the preceding five years.
- The scale and speed of this sudden voter enrollment are unprecedented, raising questions about its legitimacy.
Unexplained Voting Patterns
- Analysing the election results reveals further discrepancies.
- The BJP-led Mahayuti alliance gained 72 lakh more votes in the State elections compared to the Lok Sabha elections held just six months earlier.
- However, a shift of only 24 lakh votes from the Congress-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance accounted for this increase.
- The remaining 48 lakh votes, it appears, came from newly registered voters—exactly matching the ECI’s official data on new enrollments.
- The uniformity in voting patterns among these new voters is puzzling.
- Were these genuine voters, or were the rolls inflated with dubious entries?
- Were documents thoroughly verified during voter registration?
- These unanswered questions cast a shadow over the credibility of the election process.
The Role of the ECI
- The ECI’s silence on these anomalies is troubling.
- Transparency demands that the Commission release all relevant data and clarify these irregularities.
- Deflecting responsibility by pointing to the failure of opposition parties to identify discrepancies in real time does not absolve the ECI of its constitutional duty to ensure free and fair elections.
Strengthening Electoral Integrity
- The Maharashtra episode underscores the need for systemic reforms to protect the sanctity of electoral rolls.
- One solution lies in leveraging Aadhaar to eliminate duplicate and ghost entries through biometric verification.
- While safeguards must be implemented to ensure no eligible voter is excluded, Aadhaar-based verification can serve as a robust mechanism to enhance the credibility of voter rolls.
