Election Commission of India. - The great march of democracy: seven decades of Indias elections

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O n 26 January 1950, the Constitution of India came into operation in a remarkable display of idealism and courage. We, the people of India, gave to ourselves a sovereign democratic republic to secure for all its citizens justice, liberty and equality. We undertook the task to promote to all citizens, fraternity, the dignity of the individual and the unity of the nation. These ideals became the lodestar of the modern Indian states; democracy became our most precious guide towards peace and regeneration from the swamp of poverty that had been created by 190 years of colonial rule. The Election Commission of India (ECI) was constituted a day before the Republic Day, thereby signalling the centrality of this institutionone of the pillars of our democracy. It is a significant metaphor indicating that we received the Indian Republic with the mandate of the people. It is a truly unique body that has supervised our elections freely and fairly for the past seven decades. The National Voters Day was instituted on 25 January 2011 to celebrate the Commissions foundation day. The day is symbolic for many reasons. It is a symbol of hope, empowerment of a people to be able to determine their own destiny by electing their own representatives through universal adult suffrage. So its importance hardly needs any emphasis.

For us democracy is not a gift, but a sacred trust; the Indian Constitution consisting of 395 articles and twelve schedules is not an instrument for administration, a legal document, but a Magna Carta for the socio-economic transformation of the country. It represents the hopes and aspirations of more than a billion people of the Republic of India. From our Constitution flows our nationalism; the construct of Indian nationalism is constitutional patriotism, which consists of an appreciation of our inherited and shared diversity, a readiness to enact ones citizenship at different levels and the ability to self-correct and learn from others. Seven decades later, weve had our ups and downs, but we can proudly state that India is the worlds biggest functioning democracy. We were successful in our efforts to build a free country. We have laboured to build a strong democratic foundation. A large number of nations that gained freedom around the same time also adopted democratic systems of governance, but India is one of the very few nations that have been able to strengthen its democratic ethos. Unfortunately, many of them fell prey to autocratic rule. Thus, our history is indeed unparalleled. Our representative institutions embody the hopes and aspirations of our diverse population, and also serve as a platform to echo the grievances. While their responsiveness to public needs is assessed by the people on a continual basis, they are called to account through the medium of elections. Only the conduct of free and fair elections can ensure that we remain arguably the most vibrant democracy in the world. I have lauded the work of the Election Commission of India time and again during my years in public service for this achievement.

To ensure that the Election Commission retains its independence and status fundamental to its functioning, the Constitution of the Republic of India itself vide Article 324 gives it the powers of superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of electoral rolls for, and the conduct of, all elections to Parliament and to the Legislature of every State and of elections to the offices of the President and Vice President. Needless to say, this gives the ECI a lot of responsibility to shoulder and its efficient functioning has a singular bearing on the quality of democracy in the country.

When a newly independent India made universal adult suffrage the basis of elections, not all were convinced of our capability to implement it. However, the successful manner in which the very first elections were conducted put these speculations to rest. Since then, over the years, the Election Commission has been conducting elections successfully and improving on deficiencies to increasing participation in elections. Voters participation in the electoral process is integral to the successful running of any democracy. The level of participation reflects peoples confidence and trust in democracy. The voter is, after all, the focus and the central actor in democratic elections. For encouraging voter participation, I have always appreciated the efforts of the EC to make the process of enrolment easier and convenient, and the voting experience people-friendly. I am happy you see that not only those higher up in the election machinery but also those who worked on the ground level have contributed to the cause of electoral participation. The electorate is increasingly enthusiastic to participate along with various civil society organizations, the corporate sector, educational institutions, the media and many others who have joined the Election Commission in this shared goal. The Election Commission has to not only sustain this consciousness but also strengthen it further. Though the rise of social media and the Internet has raised awareness in our youth population, we still have to pay special attention to those outside the ambit of these digital opportunities.

The Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation or SVEEP, which was borne out of the initiatives taken up by ECI after the Lok Sabha elections in 2009. I am happy to note that today, this programme is spread out across polling stations with an attempt to reach each and every citizen of the country, keeping in mind that those who are not yet eligible to be electors, are prospective electors. In 2013, I was informed that around 2.82 crore new voters were registered across the country, of which 93 lakh were new voters. The efforts of the Commission have indeed borne good results. It is evident in the increase in the number of voters from about 76 crore in 2012 to 79 crore in 2013.