Why Do We Need Elections?
Elections take place regularly in any democracy. There are more than 100 countries in the world in which elections take place to choose people’s representatives. The mechanism by which people can choose their representatives at regular intervals and change them whenever they want to is called an election.
In an election the voters make many choices:
- They can choose who will make laws for them.
- They can choose who will form the government and take major decisions.
- They can choose the party whose policies will guide the government and law making.
What Makes an Election Democratic?
Minimum conditions of a democratic election include the following points.
- Everyone should be able to choose their own representative.
- Parties and candidates should be free to contest elections and should offer some real choice to the voters.
- Elections must be held regularly after every few years.
- The candidate preferred by the people should get elected.
- Elections should be conducted in a free and fair manner where people can choose as they really wish.
Is it Good to have Political Competition?
Elections are all about political competition. This competition takes various forms. At the constituency level, it takes the form of competition among several candidates. Here are a few reasons that support political competition as being good for people.
- Regular electoral competition provides incentives to political parties and leaders.
- Political parties know that if they raise issues that people want to be raised, their popularity and chances of victory will increase in the next elections. On the contrary, if they fail to satisfy the voters with their work, they will not be able to win again
- If a political party is motivated only by the desire to be in power, despite that, it will be forced to serve the people.
What is Our System of Election?
Elections are held in India in Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha (Assembly) regularly after every 5 years. After 5 years, the term of all the elected representatives comes to an end.
Elections held in all constituencies at the same time, either on the same day or within a few days is called a General Election. Sometimes elections are held only for one constituency to fill the vacancy caused by the death or resignation of a member. This is called a By-Election.
Electoral Constituency
India is divided into different areas for the purpose of elections. These areas are called electoral constituencies. The voters living in an area elect one representative.
- For Lok Sabha elections, India is divided into 543 constituencies. The representative elected from each constituency is called a Member of Parliament or an MP.
- Each state is divided into a specific number of Assembly constituencies. In this case, the elected representative is called the Member of Legislative Assembly or an MLA. Each Parliamentary constituency has within it several assembly constituencies.
The same principle applies for Panchayat and Municipal elections. Each village or town is divided into several ‘wards’ that are like constituencies. Each ward elects one member of the village or the urban local body. Sometimes these constituencies are counted as ‘seats’, for each constituency represents one seat in the assembly.
Reserved Constituencies
Some constituencies are reserved for people who belong to the Scheduled Castes [SC] and Scheduled Tribes [ST]. In the Lok Sabha, 84 seats are reserved for the SC and 47 for the ST.
- In SC reserved constituency, only someone who belongs to the Scheduled Caste can stand for election.
- Only those belonging to the Scheduled Tribes can contest an election from a constituency reserved for ST.
In many states, seats in rural (panchayat) and urban (municipalities and corporations) local bodies are now reserved for Other Backward Classes (OBC) and women candidates as well.
Voters’ List
In a democratic election, the list of those who are eligible to vote is prepared much before the election and given to everyone, which is officially called the Electoral Roll and is commonly known as the Voters’ List. It is the responsibility of the government to get the names of all the eligible voters put on the voters’ list.
The voters are required to carry Election Photo Identity Card [EPIC] when they go out to vote, so that no one can vote for someone else. But the card is not yet compulsory for voting as voters can show many other proofs of identity, like the ration card or the driving licence.
Nomination of Candidates
Anyone who can be a voter can also become a candidate in elections. The candidate should be a minimum of 25 years age. Every person who wishes to contest an election has to fill out a ‘nomination form’ and give some money as ‘security deposit’. The candidate has to make a legal declaration, giving full details of:
- Serious criminal cases pending against the candidate
- Details of the assets and liabilities of the candidate and his or her family
- Educational qualifications of the candidate
This information is made available to the public so that voters can make their decision on the basis of the information provided by the candidates.
Election Campaign
The election campaigns are conducted to have a free and open discussion about who is a better Representative and in turn, which party will make a better government. In India, Election Campaigns take place for a two-week period between the announcement of the final list of candidates and the date of polling. During this period the candidates contact their voters, political leaders address election meetings and political parties mobilise their supporters.
Some of the successful slogans given by different political parties in various elections:
- Save Democracy
- Land to the Tiller
- Protect the Self-Respect of the Telugus
According to India’s election law, no party or candidate can:
- Bribe or threaten voters
- Appeal to them in the name of caste or religion
- Use government resources for election campaign
- Spend more than 25 lakh in a constituency for a Lok Sabha election or 10 lakh in a constituency in an Assembly election
If any Political Party does so, their election can be rejected by the court. In addition to the laws, all the political parties in our country have agreed to a Model Code of Conduct for election campaigns. According to this, no party or candidate can:
- Use any place of worship for election propaganda
- Use government vehicles, aircraft and officials for elections
- Once elections are announced, Ministers shall not lay foundation stones of any projects, take any big policy decisions or make any promises of providing public facilities
Polling and Counting of Votes
The day when the voters cast or ‘poll’ their vote is called the election day. The voting is done in the following manner.
- Every person whose name is on the voters’ list can go to a nearby ‘polling booth’.
- Once the voter goes inside the booth, the election officials identify her, put a mark on her finger and allow her to cast her vote.
- An agent of each candidate is allowed to sit inside the polling booth and ensure that the voting takes place in a fair way
A ballot paper is a sheet of paper on which the names of the contesting candidates along with party names and symbols are listed. The ballot paper was used earlier. Nowadays, electronic voting machines (EVM) are used to record votes.
- The machine shows the names of the candidates and the party symbols.
- The voter has to just press the button against the name of the candidate she wants to give her vote to.
- Once the polling is over, all the EVMs are sealed and taken to a secure place.
- A few days later, all the EVMs are opened and the votes secured by each candidate are counted.
- The candidate who secures the highest number of votes from a constituency is declared elected.
What Makes Election in India Democratic?
1) Independent Election Commission
In India, elections are conducted by the Election Commission (EC). The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) is appointed by the President of India. Election Commission is independent and has a wide-range of powers which are:
- EC takes decisions on every aspect of conduct and control of elections from the announcement of elections to the declaration of results.
- It implements the Code of Conduct and punishes any candidate or party that violates it.
- During the election period, the EC can order the government to follow some guidelines, to prevent the use and misuse of governmental power to enhance its chances to win elections, or to transfer some government officials.
- When on election duty, government officers work under the control of the EC and not the government.
2) Popular Participation
The quality of the election process can also be checked by seeing the participation of people. People’s participation in the election is measured by voter turnout figures. Turnout indicates the per cent of eligible voters who actually cast their vote.
- In India, the poor, illiterate and underprivileged people vote in larger proportion as compared to the rich and privileged sections.
- Common people in India feel that through elections they can bring pressure on political parties to adopt policies and programmes favourable to them.
- The interest of voters in election related activities has been increasing over the years.
3) Acceptance of Election Outcome
One final test of the free and fairness of the election is the outcome of the election.
- The ruling parties routinely lose elections in India both at the national and state level.
- In the US, an incumbent or ‘sitting’ elected representative rarely loses an election. In India, about half of the sitting MPs or MLAs lose elections.
- Candidates who are known to have spent a lot of money on ‘buying votes’ and those with known criminal connections often lose elections.
- Barring very few disputed elections, the electoral outcomes are usually accepted as ‘people’s verdict’ by the defeated party.
Challenges to Free and Fair Elections
Elections in India are essentially free and fair. Sometimes this may not be true for every constituency. There are many limitations and challenges to Indian elections. These include:
- Candidates and parties with a lot of money enjoy a big and unfair advantage over smaller parties.
- Candidates with criminal connections have been able to push others out of the electoral race and to secure a ‘ticket’ from major parties.
- Tickets are distributed to relatives from their families.
- Elections offer little choice to ordinary citizens as major parties are quite similar to each other, both in policies and practice.
- Smaller parties and independent candidates suffer a huge disadvantage compared to bigger parties.
Choose the correct option:
Question 1.
How many seats are reserved in the Lok Sabha for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes?
(a) 47
(b) 60
(c) 84
(d) 100
Answer
Answer: (c) 84
Question 2.
Our country is divided into
(a) 500 constituencies
(b) 543 constituencies
(c) 550 constituencies
(d) 552 constituencies
Answer
Answer: (b) 543 constituencies
Question 3.
The number of Lok Sabha constituencies in Uttar Pradesh is
(a) 80
(b) 82
(c) 84
(d) 90
Answer
Answer: (c) 84
Question 4.
The number of Lok Sabha constituencies in Delhi is
(a) 2
(b) 4
(c) 6
(d) 7
Answer
Answer: (d) 7
Question 5.
The minimum age required for being a voter is:
(a) 25 years
(b) 21 years
(c) 18 years
(d) 15 years
Answer
Answer: (c) 18 years
Question 6.
Who appoints the Chief Election Commissioner of India?
(a) The Chief Justice of India
(b) The Prime Minister of India
(c) The President of India
(d) The Law Minister of India
Answer
Answer: (c) The President of India
Question 7.
Who led the ‘Nyaya Yudh’?
(a) Chaudhary Charan Singh
(b) Chaudhary Devi Lal
(c) Ajit Singh
(d) None of these
Answer
Answer: (b) Chaudhary Devi Lal
Question 8.
Which of these is not a feature of Indian democracy?
(a) India has the largest number of voters in the world
(b) India’s Election Commission is very powerful
(c) In India, everyone above the age of 18 has a right to vote
(d) In India, the losing parties refuse to accept the electoral verdict
Answer
Answer: (d) In India, the losing parties refuse to accept the electoral verdict
Question 9.
What is meant by the term ‘constituency’?
(a) Place where the copy of constitution is kept
(b) A particular area from where voters elect a representative to the Lok Sabha / Vidhan Sabha
(c) A body of voters
(d) None of the above
Answer
Answer: (b) A particular area from where voters elect a representative to the Lok Sabha / Vidhan Sabha
Question 10.
In India, elections for which of these bodies are held after every five years?
(a) Rajya Sabha
(b) Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha
(c) Vidhan Parishad
(d) Only Lok Sabha
Answer
Answer: (b) Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha
Question 11.
What is an election held for only one constituency to fill the vacancy caused due to the death or resignation of a member called?
(a) By-election
(b) Mid-term election
(c) General election
(d) None of these
Answer
Answer: (a) By-election
Question 12.
Constituencies called ‘wards’ are made for the election to
(a) Parliament
(b) State Legislative Assembly
(c) State Legislative Council
(d) Panchayats and municipal bodies
Answer
Answer: (b) State Legislative Assembly
Question 13.
Which of these is not a part of the district and local level bodies?
(a) Panchayats
(b) Municipalities
(c) Corporations
(d) Lok Sabha
Answer
Answer: (d) Lok Sabha
Question 14.
for voting, the voter has to show which of these as identity proof?
(a) Ration card
(b) Driving license
(c) Election Photo Identity Card
(d) None of these
Answer
Answer: (d) None of these
Question 15.
What is the details the candidates have to give in the legal declaration before contesting the elections?
(a) Serious criminal cases pending against them
(b) Details of assets and liabilities of the candidate and his or her family
(c) Educational qualification of the candidate
(d) All the above
Answer
Answer: (d) All the above
Question 16.
Name the body which conducts the elections in India
(a) Supreme Court
(b) Parliament
(c) Cabinet
(d) Election Commission
Answer
Answer: (d) Election Commission
Question 17.
When on election duty, under whose control does the government officers work?
(a) Central Government
(b) Election Commission
(c) District Magistrate
(d) District Court
Answer
Answer: (b) Election Commission
Question 18.
What does the term ‘incumbent’ mean?
(a) The current holder of a political office
(b) The candidate contesting the election
(c) The outgoing candidate of the dissolved House
(d) None of the above
Answer
Answer: (a) The current holder of a political office
Question 19.
The Election Commission is:
(a) An elected body
(b) An appointed body
(c) An independent body
(d) both (b) and (c)
Answer
Answer: (b) An appointed body
Question 20.
Which of the following statement is incorrect?
(a) All citizens above the age of 21 can vote in an election
(b) Every citizen has the right to vote regardless of caste religion or gender
(c) Some criminals and persons with unsound mind can be denied the right to vote in rare situations
(d) It is the responsibility of the government to get the names of all eligible voters put in the voters list
Answer
Answer: (a) All citizens above the age of 21 can vote in an election
Question 21.
What is the age of a person who can contest election for the Lok Sabha in India?
(a) 25 years
(b) 30 years
(c) 35 years
(d) 40 years
Answer
Answer: (a) 25 years
Question 22.
Voter’s List is also known as:
(a) Election Number
(b) Voter Identity Card
(c) Electoral Roll
(d) None of these
Answer
Answer: (c) Electoral Roll
Question 23.
Which of the following statements is against the democratic process of elections?
(a) Parties and candidates should be free to contest elections
(b) Elections must be held regularly immediately after the term is over
(c) The right to vote should be given to the selected people only
(d) Elections should be conducted in a free and fair manner
Answer
Question 24.
Reserved Constituencies ensures
(a) Right to equality
(b) Proper representation to all religious groups
(c) Proper representation to the weaker sections of society
(d) None of these
Answer
Answer: (c) Proper representation to the weaker sections of society
Question 25.
Who has given the slogan ‘Garibi Hatao’?
(a) Indira Gandhi
(b) Rajiv Gandhi
(c) Sonia Gandhi
(d) Pt. Nehru
Answer
Answer: (a) Indira Gandhi
Question 26.
Who appoints the Chief Election Commissioner of India?
(a) The Chief Justice of India
(b) The Prime Minister of India
(c) The President of India
(d) The people of India
Answer
Answer: (c) The President of India
Question 27.
The number of seats reserved for Scheduled Castes in the Lok Sabha is:
(a) 59
(b) 79
(c) 89
(d) 99
Answer
Answer: (b) 79
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