— Nurul Islam Laskar India is practicing the parliamentary form of democracy since 1947. Democracy was introduced first under the improvised Government of India Act, 1935 and later under the present Constitution in operation since 1950. India has been operating the present Constitution uninterruptedly since then in a very effective manner.
It is under the Constitution that periodic elections have been held and the country has implemented its Five Year Plans heralding a new era of development and progress. From a country begging for food supplies from abroad, the green revolution turned India into a country self-sufficient in food. The white revolution has given India milk and milk products in abundant measure. Over the years the country’s industrial and scientific achievements have been impressive.
At a time when dictatorships and anarchy mark the political system in a large chunk of the third world, one must give credit to the Indian people who have nurtured democracy and electoral system in spite of the country being besieged by problems of language, religion, ignorance, geographical isolation of some constituents units, natural calamities and so on and so forth.
While the Constitution lays down the procedure for the election of the President (Article 54) and the Vice President (Article 66), the procedure for election to the Legislatures of the Union and the States is left to legislation, the Constitution itself providing certain principles. These principles are : (a) There is no provision for communal, separate or special representation. There shall be one electoral roll for every territorial constituency for election to either House of Parliament or to the State Legislature and no person shall be excluded from such roll on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex or any of them (Article 325).
(b) The election shall be on the basis of adult suffrage i.e. every person who is a citizen of India and who is not less than 18 years of age shall be entitled to vote at the election provided he is not disqualified by any provision of the Constitution or of any law made by the appropriate Legislature on the ground of non-residence, unsoundness of mind, or corrupt or illegal practice (Article 326).
The process of election is recognised as the cornerstone of any democratic system, as it is the political means through which the political opinion and awareness of the people are moulded and promoted. Election involves people into politics or public affairs through participation and mobilisation, provides political linkages, resolves conflicts, fulfils their aspirations and also brings about peaceful and orderly change of authority of Government.
The right to govern for a defined period is obtained in the election in a legitimate competition with vying parties. The political parties, as per the rules of parliamentary representative democracy, have to accept the election results.
Thus the process gets an added significance in a parliamentary democracy where the entire responsibility vests in the people, who after judging policies, programmes, manifestos and promises made by different political parties for the development of the society, give their mandate in favour of one party or an alliance of parties for the governance of the country.
The right to exercise franchise has a great value in the representative system of Government. In the words of V S Srinivas Sastri, a great authority on electoral politics of our times, “You cannot make a government till you have gone and recorded your vote. He who refuses or neglects to use ‘his vote, it seems to me, thereby proclaims to the world that he is not yet fit to become a member of democratic polity.”
Nani A. Palkhiwala, who is considered an authority on constitutional law of India, had this to say, “The duty of the citizen is not merely to vote but to vote wisely. He must be guided by reason, and by reason alone. He must vote for the best man, irrespective of any other consideration and irrespective of the party label. The right man in the wrong party is any day preferable to the wrong man in the right party.”
The ancient Greek political thinker Plato had summed up the whole issue in a few words, “The punishment of wise men who refuse to take part in the affairs of government is to live under the government of unwise men.”
As the people of Assam gear up to go to the hustings once again, it would be appropriate for every voter to appreciate the spirit behind “Prayer for Election Day” circulated by the Christophers, a service organisation of the USA as follows:
God of nations Author of freedom, Source of all power, We Your people thank You for the blessings of liberty. May we fulfil the civic responsibilities that accompany those blessings. Send on us Your Spirit as we freely delegate to other frail humans the authority to govern us. May we after due deliberation choose as our representatives men and women who will work intelligently, perseveringly and conscientiously for the cause of truth and justice– for the good of our community our country and our world, Amen.
Your vote is important. Decisions made by elected people affect your life. Voting represents power. It is an opportunity for you to let your voice be heard in electing the Government of your choice. Groups that don’t vote are ignored. Some times elections are extremely close. Even one vote may change the result. That vote may be yours! ASSAM TRIBUNE
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