The Election Commission of India (EC) is losing its credibility rapidly. The first salvo was shot on the independence of the Commission when the BJP government ousted the Chief Justice of India (CJI) from the 3-member panel which was tasked with the selection of the Chief Election Commissioner. Instead of CJI, a cabinet minister was made a member of the panel. Thus the Prime Minister, the Leader of Opposition and a minister from the ruling party had to choose the Chief Election Commissioner. You can guess that through this method the Leader of Opposition was made just a fence sitter. In this way, the selection of an independent person as Chief Election Commissioner became impossible.
Shortly the Bihar Assembly Elections are scheduled to be held. The amended and recently introduced procedure of electoral roll verification in Bihar is basically defective and highly objectionable. The EC has issued a list of 11 documents out of which at least two are required for a citizen to be eligible for voting.
Bihar is one of the poorest and least literate states. Further, a big number of voters there are employed in other states as migrant workers. Another difficulty is the short time given for revision of the voters list. Officers in Bihar are quoting the Constitution of India which says that only an Indian citizen is entitled to vote. This has raised doubts, especially among the Muslims of Bihar who are about one-fifth of the state population that it is NRC in the garb of EC’s roll revision. There is a grave danger that the questionable method introduced by the EC will endanger the voting rights of 8 crorecitizens in Bihar.
All opposition parties are up in arms against the EC. They have challenged the EC policy as unconstitutional, arbitrary and based on malafide intention. The Association for Democratic Rights (ADR)is also knocking at the door of the Supreme Court. There is widespread resentment and tension in Bihar. Leaders and common citizens are openly saying that the ruling dispensation is hell bent on demolishing the foundations of democracy by depriving the citizens of their fundamental right to vote.
People express their grave suspicion that the BJP is determined to derail democracy and introduce one-party rule by misuse of power it wields.
Let us hope that at this dangerous juncture the Apex Court will use powers vested in it and solve the problem. It would be prudent that the CJI constitutes a special bench to monitor the actions of the EC. If the government is not reprimanded and not corrected, the country would be pushed into the vortex of disturbances which, God forbid, may lead to disintegration.