My Election Manifesto

While going through the pages of the national daily this morning, i came across the news of the Election Commission planning to announce the 2009 General Elections for the Lok Sabha in and around the months of April – May next year. As the election scene in Jammu & Kashmir wrapped up yesterday with another coalition government looking very much evident in the valley, all political parties are now gearing up for the coveted throne in Delhi. The BJP and the whole of NDA would be in revenge mode as they would be looking towards making inflation and terrorism as the main issues in their campaign. The current UPA government is basking under the glory of the successful nuclear deal but the issues of inflation and national security will constantly be haunting the Congress led alliance. I won’t be surprised if Mayawati comes out to be the kingmaker when the largest democracy of the world declares its verdict somewhere in May or June next year.

It's up to us to decide who goes here.

But my point here is that, will the election result be a verdict of the people? We have seen the Election Commission declaring very proudly the figure of some 65 – 70 % voting in most of the general and assembly elections. 65 – 70 % people coming out to cast their vote is mostly, if not always, the maximum turnout in nearly all the elections of our country! On an average, the average voter turnout of all the general elections held so far in independent India is a shocking 59.63%. Here is a link to a table showing the voter turn outs for all the general elections held so far. Is the result of votes by a mere 59% of the country’s adult population, the verdict of the entire country? Definitely, no! More importantly, we all know that who is responsible for this. We, the citizens of India are the biggest culprits for this democratic debacle.

This is the point where every non-voter has a ready answer, “There is no political leader or party that can do any good for this country. Sab chor hain. So there is no point in voting!” I ask them, is not going to vote a solution for your country’s problems, or is your ‘logical reason’ a mere excuse for escaping long queues at the polling booth and thus ‘spoiling’ your holiday which the government has given to you to take a long awaited afternoon nap or checking out the nearest multiplex for a movie or two? The jaagore campaign of a leading tea manufacturer is doing its bit in enabling easy voter registration for us. But the point is, are such campaigns and numerous advertisements by the Election Commission enough for waking up the millions of sleeping Indians who are often seen crediting their lack of interest in politics for their presence at the shopping mall or the multiplex on election day.

Voting is a national duty not merely a fundamental right.

My answer is no. The only resort for ensuring that the large electorate of over a 700 million people turns up at the polling booths on election day is making voting compulsory. Voting in India is a fundamental right of all the citizens of the country above 18 years of age. This very concept has to be understood in a different manner by us. Voting is not only a fundamental right but a national duty of every citizen of the country. But as it is not easy to make people understand this basic fact, there is every reason with the legislature to make voting in India compulsory. It is not that there have not been any attempts for this is the past. In my recent memory, the president of the Uttarakhand BJP, Bachi Singh Rawat moved this bill in the Lok Sabha in the year 2004 but it was rejected by a voice vote. Rajya Sabha MP Jai Prakash Aggarwal also moved the Compulsory Voting Bill in the Upper House in 2006; again with no positive outcome.

India's politicians rely on vote bank politics.

The rejection of Compulsory Voting Bill by our leaders, every time it is moved in the Parliament, points to only one hard fact – our leaders do not want every one of us to vote! Voting by every educated citizen of the country goes against the very principles of the Vote Bank Politics followed by the political parties of our country. These parties know that it is not easy to mould the thoughts and ideas of the educated masses by the dirty politics of regionalism, communalism and false promises, and we very gracefully accept their ways and means of running our country.

Now let me talk some facts. This is a portion of the Compulsory Voting Bill, 2006 moved by MP Jai Prakash Aggarwal.

Any eligible citizen, who fails to cast his vote in any election –

(i) shall be liable to a fine of rupees five hundred; or

(ii) shall be punishable with imprisonment for two days; or

(iii) shall be punishable with forfeiture of his ration card; or

(iv) shall be debarred from contesting any election for a period of ten years from the date of his conviction; or

(v) shall be debarred from allotment of any plot or house in a Central/State Government owned organisation; or

(vi) shall be debarred from taking loan of any kind in all the Central/State Government owned financial institutions; or

(vii)shall be debarred from entitlement to any welfare scheme announced by the Central/State Governments from time to time.

Provided that if such a person is an employee of the Central or the State Government or any public sector undertaking owned by Central/State Government, he shall be punished with—

(a) forfeiture of ten days salary; and

(b) delay in promotion for a period of two years.

There may be many exceptions to these rules, the discussion of the details of which is irrelevant here. Such a system is, in my opinion, very necessary for ensuring that people do come out and exercise their Universal Adult Franchisee. But this is surely not the solution towards a true democracy. True democracy is when people willingly come out to vote on every election day. But the relevance of such a system is that it will play the role of educating the younger generation about the necessity of voting and after a period of time, say 30-40 years, it can subsequently be abolished by a Constitutional Amendment Act.

It’s not that good politicians or good leaders are sent directly from heaven. If the politicians and ministers would know that they have been sent to work by the entire population of the country and not by a mere 50-60 % of the electorate, and this population, the second largest in the world is keeping a strict watch on them, they will work for the people (they will run out of options, isn’t it?).

India is not merely a country where we live. It is our home. It is our duty to make our home shine (i mean truly shine, unlike the farce called ‘India Shining’) among all the other countries of the world. As the punchline of a famous paint manufacturing company goes, Har ghar chupchaap se ye kehta hai, ki andar isme kaun rehta hai (meaning: a home is built by the people who live in), every country too is built and is recognised by the people who live there. We have to be responsible citizens, and for this, the first duty is to vote, whether it’s compulsory or not.

May the government after the 2009 general elections be truly by the people, because then only it can be of the people and more importantly, for the people.

Suggested link: wikipedia