By K Raveendran
The credibility and trustworthiness of the Election Commission of India (ECI) have hit a new low in the current Lok Sabha elections and the situation has come to such a pass that it cannot be retrieved without certain cataclysmic changes in the system.
India’s election commission had won the world’s admiration for the stupendous task that holding of general elections involved by the sheer numbers and spread. It has for long been the cornerstone of the world’s largest democracy, tasked with the monumental responsibility of ensuring free and fair elections. However, through successive elections, the commission’s reputation has suffered and the 2024 elections have cast a long shadow over the institution’s credibility, raising questions and concerns that demand a closer examination.
In the lead-up to the 2024 elections, the ECI found itself embroiled in a controversy that would set the tone for the electoral process. The appointment of two new election commissioners, Gyanesh Kumar and Sukhbir Singh Sandhu, just before the elections were declared, was met with scepticism and legal challenges. The Supreme Court’s decision to dismiss pleas seeking a stay on these appointments, citing potential chaos and uncertainty, did little to quell the rising tide of doubt.
The exclusion of the Chief Justice of India from the selection panel, as per the 2023 law, further fuelled the disappointment. The traditional three-member committee, which included the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition, and the CJI, was now reduced to a duo, with the judiciary’s representative conspicuously absent. This departure from established norms was seen by many as a sign of the ECI’s diminishing independence.
The run-up to the election had already cast a long shadow over how the commission would perform. The subsequent developments proved that the fears were not at all misplaced. As the elections unfolded, the ECI’s handling of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) came under intense scrutiny. Allegations of bias in favour of the ruling party surfaced, with critics pointing to a pattern of selective enforcement. Instances where the ruling party’s transgressions seemed to be overlooked, while the opposition faced stringent action, were highlighted as evidence of this partiality.
BJP leaders, led by prime minister Modi himself, blatantly violated the code of conduct, but the commission pretended to look away. The commission’s act of sending notices to party chiefs was seen as an eyewash, meant to shield the offenders. To make a semblance of neutrality, it also sent such notice to the Congress president.
The sanctity of places of worship, traditionally off-limits for election propaganda, was compromised, with reports of political messaging seeping into these sacred spaces. The ECI’s silence on these matters was deafening, leading to accusations of turning a blind eye to violations of the MCC.
The ghost of Anoop Baranwal, a reference to the Supreme Court’s directive for a committee including the CJI to nominate election commissioners, loomed large over the proceedings. The ECI’s deviation from this directive was perceived as a deliberate act, undermining the checks and balances essential for maintaining the integrity of the electoral process.
There have been allegations that the unduly long period that the voting was stretched to, leading to very low voter turnouts in all the phases of voting, was done to facilitate campaigning by the prime minister to cover the breadth and length of the country. The duration of the election clearly caused fatigue among the public as well as political parties with fewer resources, such as the main opposition Congress which faced fund squeeze on account of punitive action by central agencies.
The commission suffering unprecedented loss of face is bound to give the losing parties room to take cover and blame extraneous factors for their loss and with the results day less than a week away, even a landslide victory by the ruling party would be met with scepticism and allegations of foul play. The ECI’s insistence that the elections were conducted fairly will do little to assuage the concerns of those who viewed the entire process as a grand illusion masquerading as democracy.
The net result is that the series of controversies and the perceived bias have eroded public trust in an institution that was once synonymous with the democratic ethos of India. As the nation grapples with the implications of these developments, the future of the ECI hangs in the balance, and it would take momentous decisions to restore its credibility, which the ruling party will be least interested in. (IPA Service)
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