Curbs on election activities relief for commoners
- The People's Chronicle Editorial :: January 24, 2022 -

FOR those who see elections as merely a constitutional obligation to aid the contestants make tall promises and the elected ones remembering the assurances given to the people at the fag end of his/her mandated tenure, the extension of ban on physical rallies and road shows till January 31 is definitely a blessing in disguise.

Unlike the pre-corona era when election times used to be dominated by the candidates trying to outdo one another over issues of common interest and personal vendetta, exercising more lung power and harping on catchy narrative to exploit the public sentiment and blending them with promises of economic development, the Election Commission of India’s decision to prolong the prohibition on physical public meetings of political parties or contesting candidates will relieve the commoners from the customary no-holds barred mudslinging game to some extent.

In view of the rising cases of Covid-19 across the country, the ECI has extended the ban and such a decision, which is unprecedented in the history of Indian electoral politics, remains the only option to help prevent the health crisis from getting worse.

It is equally important that the candidates do not attempt to take undue advantage of the Commission’s decision to make some relaxations for the first phase elections as the leniency is primarily intended to uphold sanctity of the democratic exercise and provide level playing field to all seeking public mandate.

Rather the intending candidates ought to be thankful to the ECI for allowing physical meetings in designated open spaces with a maximum of 500 people or 50 per cent of the capacity of the ground.

While candidates who launched the campaign belatedly are certain to feel wretched for believing that the pandemic situation would wane and expecting the ECI to lift the prohibition, extension of the ban gives the rare opportunity to the adult franchisee to introspect on characters, public-centric activities and affability of their potential representatives.

Compared to past elections, when speeches centred on cocktails of propriety, visions and character assassination blurred the electors’ prowess to differentiate qualities of the candidates, this time around the restrictions ought to be capitalised to choose committed legislators.

Moreover, the curbs would help the candidates to reduce election-related expenditures, which in Manipur’s context is the main factor for many elected representatives to remain in deep slumber only to remember the electors when the next elections are round the corner.

It needs no reminding that legislators of both ruling and opposition parties seldom initiate developmental plans and programmes for 3-4 years after winning the polls as their prime concern is on recovery of the resources spent in getting the people’s mandate.

In this age of internet and unlimited exchange of ideas through the various social media platforms, the voters may count and assess people-oriented activities of the intending candidates and try to comprehend whether such overt acts of benevolence were driven with the ulterior motive to get to the assembly for wielding power rather than sustaining the pre-poll activities after receiving the people’s mandate as well.

Thus, it is hoped that conduct of the elections under the shadow of the pandemic will usher in a new era with priority on economic growth, creating jobs, good governance, bringing investors and ending ethnic strife.