Election and Political Parties | PSIR Optional for UPSC (Notes) PDF Download

Composition, duties and functions of the Election Commission 

• The Election Commission is tasked with overseeing and managing the preparation of electoral rolls for elections to the Parliament, State Legislatures, and for the offices of President and Vice-President of India. This body operates independently and is responsible for ensuring free and fair elections in the country.
• Composition: The Election Commission can include a Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners as appointed by the President of India.
• Removal of Officials: The Chief Election Commissioner can only be removed from office in the same manner and on similar grounds as a Supreme Court judge. Other Election Commissioners can be removed by the President, but only based on the recommendation of the Chief Election Commissioner. Additionally, the service conditions of the Chief Election Commissioner cannot be altered to their disadvantage after their appointment.
• Dispute Resolution: Disputes regarding the election of the President and Vice-President are exclusively handled by the Supreme Court. In contrast, disputes related to the election of the Prime Minister or the Speaker of the Lok Sabha are resolved through election petitions in the High Court.

The principal functions of the Election Commission are: To control, direct and monitor all matters relating to the election of the President, Vice-President, members of Parliament and State Legislatures.

• To get the electoral rolls for all elections prepared, revised and updated, in accordance with the laws of the land. 
• To appoint election officials for enquiring into election disputes. 
• To settle disputes in regard to allotment of sym- bols for the various parties contesting the elections. 
• To issue notifications regarding the various election schedules. To advise the President/Governors on the question of disqualifications incurred by members of State Assemblies. 
• To issue a Code of Conduct and Ethics to be adhered to by the political parties and their candidates before and during the elections. 
• To appoint the appropriate election machinery throughout the country. 
• To provide the necessary staff for the smooth conduct of elections nationwide. To review periodically the electoral performance of political parties.

The Need for Urgent Reforms in the Political System

• Ensuring Effective Democracy: There is an immediate need for significant changes to ensure that the democratic system functions properly and efficiently, and to achieve the goals set out in the Constitution more quickly.
• Regulating Political Parties: A law to regulate political parties is urgently required. This could involve making necessary amendments to the Constitution to oversee and control how political parties operate.
• State Financing of Elections: Another important change could be the introduction of State financing for elections. This measure could help eliminate corruption and the influence of money in the electoral process. For instance, in the United Kingdom, where the State has financed elections since 1927, there have been no instances of corrupt practices brought before the Judiciary.
• The Role of Politics: Politics is crucial for the life of a nation in a democratic setup. When politics becomes corrupt, it strains the entire political system. The educated and informed sections of society should not allow negative and anti-social elements to dominate politics.
• Deterioration of Parliamentary Functioning: The functioning of Parliament has declined over the years. There is a significant gap between the creation and execution of socio-economic policies. Bureaucrats often seem more focused on their own interests or are too lazy to prevent the misuse of power by politicians.
• Restoring Value-Based Politics: Given the current troubled political climate, it is crucial to initiate amendments to the Constitution to restore the clean and value-based politics reminiscent of the Nehru era.

Role of opposition in a parliamentary democracy

• In a parliamentary democracy, the opposition plays a crucial role by monitoring the government’s policies and actions, highlighting failures and lapses with the aim of gaining electoral support to eventually capture power. The opposition needs to be prepared to form an alternative government and, through constant criticism, raises political awareness among the public, contributing significantly to the formation of public opinion on various issues.
• Additionally, the opposition acts as a guardian of the people’s liberties.

The Challenge of Effective Opposition in India

• Unfortunately, an effective opposition has struggled to develop in India. The Indian National Congress has predominantly been in power at the Centre and in most states, while opposition parties have often been divided.
• They have only managed to unite around the goal of ousting Congress, lacking a positive agenda of their own. This internal discord has hindered their ability to maintain a strong presence. Although various political parties have formed governments in some states, with the exceptions of Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Andhra Pradesh, they have not made a significant impact.
• The formation of political parties around specific leaders and the frequent defection of leaders from one party to another have also impeded the development of a robust opposition. Moreover, the ruling party’s harsh criticism of the opposition, branding their activities as anti-national, has discouraged public support for these parties, further weakening the opposition’s position.

Strategies for Strengthening Opposition

• To strengthen the opposition in India, fragmented political parties should consider uniting. Reforming the electoral system, particularly by introducing a proportional system of representation, could ensure that each party receives a share of power in accordance with its support, although this is a challenging process.
• Moreover, the ruling party should involve opposition leaders in discussions on important national issues. Opposition parties must focus on organizing and strengthening themselves at the grassroots level and maintaining close connections with the public.

Defection

• Defection means desertion or abandonment.
• In politics, it includes situations like change of party or shifting of loyalty.
• It can involve repudiation of the label under which a legislator contests elections.
• Defection may include crossing of floor inside the legislative chamber.
• It also refers to severance of connection from one party to join another.
• The 52nd Amendment Act disqualifies a member of a legislature for defecting from their party.
• The Act allows the Party President to expel members, leading to automatic expulsion from the legislature.
• This provision was withdrawn due to concerns over arbitrary authority of party leaders.
• Final decisions are now made by the Speaker/Chairman of the House.
• Legislative proceedings under the Act have protection from judicial review.
• There are two exceptionsto disqualification:
  • A group of one-third of the total membership can decide in favor of a split.
  • A group of two-thirds can decide in favor of a merger with another party.

Some of the weaknesses of the Anti-Defection Act are outlined below:  

• Defection within political parties is undeniably problematic and needs to be addressed.
• The justification for making an exception in cases of splits within political parties lacks logical reasoning.
• It infringes upon the freedom of conscience of legislators and stifles the right to dissent.
• The provision that allows for labeling a person as a defector and expelling them from the House membership is beyond the scope of judicial review, which is highly objectionable.
• The penalties imposed on defectors are excessively harsh and could lead to party dominance, undermining the effective functioning of democracy.
• A more effective approach would be to reduce the opportunities for material temptations for legislators.
• Potential defectors should be barred from any lucrative positions.
• Parties accepting them should be deregistered by the Election Commission for a specified period.
• Implementing these measures would serve as a deterrent against defections.

Demerits of Electoral System

Though some reforms have been introduced into our electoral system, still it is beset with many evils, some of which are as follows —

1. The mounting expenditure on election, incurred both by the Government on organising them and more particularly, by the parties and candidates on fighting them. The political parties and their candidates mainly rely on business contributions which are mostly in cash and from unaccounted money. Another source is the wealth amassed by the gangs of anti-social elements — smugglers, decoits, and industrial mafias. Also there is increasing use of muscle power in aid of the candidates belonging to dominant castes and communities in a constituency. Often the administrative machinery is hand in glove with these elements.
2. Due to large number of candidates, the winner candidate very often wins by minority votes. The percentage of votes polled by political parties also does not correspond to their percentage of seats. The majority party generally wins with minority votes.
3. The object dependence of the Election Commission on the central and state governments for the conduct of the polls is another serious defect in the existing electoral system. Many Presiding Officers at the polling booths have been caught stamping the ballot papers and putting them inside the ballot boxes during the night before the poll.
4. Candidates with criminal records are contesting elections and get elected by using strong arms.

Electrol Reforms

Some of the electoral reforms introduced in our electoral system are as follows —

1. Lowering of voting age — Parliament t hrough Constitution (Sixty-first Amendment) Act, 1988 in 1989 reduced the minimum voting age from 21 to 18.
2. Deputation to Election Commission — Under the Representation of the People (Amendment) Act, 1988, a new  section 13 CC was inserted which provides that officers or staff engaged in preparation, revision and correction of electoral rolls for elections shall be deemed to be on deputation of Election Commission. For, the period of such employment and such personnel shall during that period, be subject to control, superintendence and discipline of Election Commission.
3. Increase in number of proposers — Number of electors who are required to sign as proposers in nomination papers for elections to Council of States Legislative Council has been increased to ten percent of the electors of the constituency or ten such electors, whichever is less, to prevent frivolous candidates.
4. Electronic voting machine — The Representation of the People Act 1951, was amended to facilitate use of electronic voting machines in elections.
5. Booth capturing — Section 58 A has been inserted in the Representation of the People Act, 1951 by Act 1 of 1989 providing for adjournment of poll or countermanding of elections because of booth capturing.
6. Poll law ordinance — There will be no countermanding of elections in case of deaths of independent candidates or of those set up by unrecognised parties.
7. Photo-I-cards — The Election Commission has made the issue of photo-identity cards is not an indispensable precondition now, but photo-Icards issue has become one of the feature of our polity.
8. Curbs on vehicles — The Election Commission has directed the state governments to strictly restrict the use of vehicles by candidates, their agents, ministers and political parties on polling day. The order states that on the day of the polling a candidate would be allowed to use only one vehicle for a parliamentary constituency.
9. Ban on new arms licences — The Election Commission has instructed States and Union Territories to ban licensing of new arms from the date of announcement of an election including by-election till the process is completed.
10. Disqualification — Disqualification section has been made more stiff by including offences under various laws.
11. Punishment — Punishment for causing disturbances at election meetings has been enhanced.

Suggestions for Better Electoral System 

The electoral system in India requires significant reform to address its shortcomings and strengthen democracy. Various proposals have been put forward to improve the system, ensuring fairer and more efficient elections.

Need for Reform in the Electoral System:
To enhance the electoral process and address existing challenges, the following reforms are proposed:

Reorganization of the Election Commission:

• The appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) should involve a committee comprising the Chief Justice of India, the leaders of the ruling party, and the main opposition party in Parliament. This aims to reduce the ruling party's dominance in the appointment process.
• To ensure impartiality, the CEC should be ineligible for any government position after completing their term, although a compensation package may be offered.
• Election Commission members should be appointed by the same committee proposed for the CEC, with the CEC as an ex-officio member.

Independence of the Election Machinery:

• The Election Commission should have its own administrative machinery at the state level and enhanced powers to operate independently of central and state governments.
• Currently, the Commission relies on state governments for maintaining electoral rolls, compromising its independence.

Discouraging Fake Candidates:

• To prevent frivolous candidacies, the Election Commission suggests:
• Raising security deposits for Lok Sabha and State Assembly candidates.
• Denying certain facilities to independent candidates.
• Disqualifying candidates who fail to secure a minimum percentage of valid votes.
• While some suggestions are valid, others, like banning independents, are problematic.
• Banning the practice of contesting from multiple constituencies should also be considered.

Simultaneous Elections:

• Holding simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha, state assemblies, and local bodies could significantly reduce election expenses and promote a healthier party system.
• This approach aims to rectify the historical separation of Lok Sabha and state assembly elections, which increased costs.

State Funding of Elections:

• Implementing state funding for electoral campaigns is crucial.
• Candidates from recognized political parties and independents meeting certain criteria should receive fixed contributions towards their election expenses.
• Grants should also be provided to recognized parties for organizational work and office expenses, with mandatory audits of party accounts.

Revising Election Timetable:

• To reduce candidates' expenses, the timeline for scrutinizing nominations and allowing withdrawals should be adjusted.

Caretaker Government:

• During Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, the Central and state governments should function as caretaker governments, including some opposition leaders, to ensure neutrality.

Proportional Representation with List System:

• Shifting from the majority system to proportional representation would ensure that legislative bodies reflect the popular support of different political parties. Seats should be allocated based on the proportion of valid votes received by each party.

Tarakunde Committee Recommendations:
The Tarakunde Committee, appointed by Jayaprakash Narayan in 1974, proposed reforms in the electoral system. Key recommendations included:

• Appointment of the Election Commission by the President based on advice from a committee including the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition, and the Chief Justice.
• Establishment of a three-member Election Commission.
• Setting the minimum voting age at 18 years.
• Regulating TV and radio under an autonomous corporation.
• Formation of Voter's Councils to facilitate free and fair elections.

Goswami Committee Recommendations

In 1990, the Goswami Committee, led by Law Minister Dinesh Goswami, examined the electoral system and proposed measures to address its flaws. Key recommendations included:

• Strengthening measures against booth-capturing, rigging, and intimidation, including repolling and countermanding based on various reports.
• Amending the anti-defection law to limit disqualification to specific cases of party membership withdrawal or voting contrary to party directives.
• Considering a shift to proportional representation or the list system through expert consultation.

Recognition of Parties

The Election Commission's decision to tighten the criteria for party recognition is a positive step in the electoral landscape. This move aims to ensure that parties claiming national status genuinely have a significant presence and influence across multiple states.

Current Criteria for Party Recognition:

• Under the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, a party can be recognized as a State-level party if it meets certain criteria over a period of five years.
• A party must secure at least one member in the Lok Sabha for every 25 members or one member for every 30 members of a State Assembly. Alternatively, it can qualify by securing not less than four percent of the total valid votes cast in the elections in the State.
• If a State party meets these conditions in four or more states, it is recognized as a national party. Those satisfying the conditions in less than four states are considered State-level parties.

Proposed Changes by the Election Commission:

• The Election Commission has raised concerns about the current criteria, suggesting that the four states required for national recognition could be too small, such as Mizoram,Meghalaya,Goa, or Manipur.
• To address this, the Commission proposed doubling the percentage of votes needed for recognition as a State party. Additionally, a State party should be recognized as a national party only if it meets the criteria in six or more states instead of the current four.

Impact on Political Parties:

• These proposed changes could lead to opposition from parties that might lose their national status due to stricter criteria.
• A national party enjoys greater status and privileges compared to a State party. If national parties are downgraded to State party status, their prestige and influence across the country will be significantly affected.
• Historically, there were eight national-level parties and 38 State-level parties recognized by the Symbols Order.
• For parties that rely on symbol recognition by voters, losing national status, even partially, could harm their electoral prospects.

Conclusion

The Election Commission's efforts to strengthen party recognition criteria aim to prevent the proliferation of frivolous parties that complicate the electoral process. The Commission is seeking powers to amend party registration rules in consultation with the Union Government, and its efforts to streamline party functioning should receive widespread support.