Friday, January 14, 2011

Winning Strategies for Liberal Politics: Learning from South Africa

India FNF Alumni Network (IFAN) in partnership with Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit Invites you to a discussion on "Winning Strategies for Liberal Politics: Learning from South Africa" on Thursday, 20 January 2011, New Delhi.


Speaker: Ms. Katja M. Egger, FNF South Africa
Moderator: Barun Mitra, Liberty Institute


Registration: 1530 hrs onwards
Hi-Tea: 1530 hrs - 1600 hrs
Discussion: 1600 hrs – 1800 hrs

Venue: USO House, 6 Special Institutional Area, New Delhi 110 067

RSVP: India FNF Alumni Network, New Delhi
Mobile nos.: 9818499293 (Nupur Hasija, FNF New Delhi)



Speaker Profile

Katja Egger is the Project Officer and head of the Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit Office in Cape Town, South Africa since 2008. In this capacity, she has managed the work of the Foundation with its long time partner-The Democratic Alliance (SA’s liberal party). Her areas of expertise are political consultancy and education, democracy, rule of law and human rights. She consults and trains South African and Southern African politicians at national, provincial and municipal level on organizational development, strategy, communication, leadership, team building and conflict management. She develops, designs, facilitates and moderating workshops on these themes on a regular basis within the region and also at the International Academy for Leadership in Germany. A lawyer by profession, she has also taught various law related subjects at the University of Berne in Switzerland.


Nupur Hasija
Executive, Coordination

Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit
Regional Office, South Asia
USO House, 6 Special Institutional Area
New Delhi, India

Tel.: +91-11-26862064, 26863846
Fax: +91-11-26862042

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Assembly by-elections in five States announced

The Election Commission of India announced that by-elections to fill up six Assembly seats in five States will be held. In Kharsawan, by-elections will be held on on February 10, the notification being issues on January 17th and counting of votes on February 17th. In Chhattisgarh , Gujarat , Manipur and Madhya Pradesh, the election is scheduled for February 14 and the notification will be issued on January 21, reports The Hindu.

NEW DELHI: The Election Commission on Wednesday announced by-elections to fill up six Assembly seats in five States.

In the Kharsawan (ST) constituency in Jharkhand, the poll will be held on February 10 and the notification will be issued on January 17. The counting of votes will be on February 17.

In Chhattisgarh (Sanjari Balod constituency), Gujarat (Khadia), Manipur (Konthoujam) and Madhya Pradesh (Kukshi-ST and Sonkatch-SC), the election is scheduled for February 14 and the notification will be issued on January 21. The counting of votes will take place on February 17.

Regarding Jharkhand, the EC said the State government conveyed to the Commission that Chief Minister Arjun Munda, who assumed office on September 11, 2010, due to constitutional requirement had to become a member of the Legislative Assembly on or before March 10, 2011.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Election Commission may reduce minimum voting age to 16

The Election Commission of India is examining a proposal to reduce the minimum age of voting right to 16 years from the present age of 18. Chief Election Commissioner Y S Quraishi said "We may recommend to the government to reduce the minimum voting age to 16 years, if more youths, particularly new voters, participate in the electoral process," in a meeting organized by Youth United for Voter Awareness, an NGO, reports The Indian Express.

The Election Commission today said it was examining a proposal to reduce the minimum age for voting right to 16 years from the existing 18.

"We may recommend to the government to reduce the minimum voting age to 16 years, if more youths, particularly new voters, participate in the electoral process," Chief Election Commissioner Y S Quraishi told a meeting organised by Youth United for Voter Awareness (YUVA), an NGO.

Though above 35 per cent of voters were youths, their participation was the lowest, he said.

Quraishi said though the minimum voting right age was reduced to 18 from 21 years, participation of new voters was not up to expectation.

As the present day youths were well versed with technologies and comparatively better informed, there was no harm in reducing the minimum voting right age to 16 years, he said.

The EC will launch an awareness drive among students to inform about the rights and significance of participation, he said.

The awareness campaign would include meetings, rallies, seminars and other activities to attract youths to the electoral process, the CEC said after releasing a document prepared by YUVA on youth participation in elections.

Quraishi also said the EC was working on establishing the Indian Institute of Democratic Studies on the lines of IIT and IIM to educate government officials, students and others from within the country and abroad about various aspects of the democratic processes.

Monday, January 10, 2011

Sunlight to electric light

India is a democracy, but without flaws. Disclosure of information could be not just of public servants, but of corporate sector or educational institutions and media. It need not be coercive. It can even be voluntary. Because of Election Commission affidavits, we know 543 MPs in the 15th Lok Sabha have a combined wealth of Rs 3,075 crore, Namma Nageswara Rao leading the field with Rs 174 crore. The battle that there should be disclosure and that disclosure should be in the public domain, is far from over, writes Bibek Debroy in The Indian Express.

Most people will have heard of Brandeis University, not necessarily of US Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis (1856-1941). Justice Brandeis is credited with the quote, “Sunlight is the best disinfectant.” In any democracy, information and disclosure are like light. Most debates about disclosure have concerned public servants. Consequently, because of Election Commission (EC) affidavits, we know 543 MPs in the 15th Lok Sabha have a combined wealth of Rs 3,075 crore, Namma Nageswara Rao (TDP) leading the field with Rs 174 crore.

Disclosure need not only be about public servants. Much of corporate governance is about disclosure of information, and eventual regulation of educational institutions and the media will be along similar lines. Nor does disclosure have to be mandated by law; it can be voluntary. However, rarely does anyone voluntarily part with information, even if there is no culpability.

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There is a difference between disclosure and information being placed in the public domain. There is greater reluctance to place information in the public domain. Witness the case of ministers or the judiciary.

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India is becoming richer. It is democratic, with all the warts and blemishes. And despite some recent question marks, it has a free press. Yet the battle that there should be disclosure and that disclosure should be in the public domain, is far from over. Perhaps this is understandable. The Right to Information Act is a little over five years old and the Official Secrets Act is 87 years old.

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It divides assets into moveable and immoveable. In the moveable category are cash, deposits, bonds, other financial instruments, motor vehicles, jewellery and other assets (values of claims/ interests).

Cash and deposits should be straightforward enough, though even there, we may have a problem.

Babulal Agrawal is a 1988 batch Chhattisgarh cadre IAS officer. When there was an income-tax raid, it was revealed he possessed 220 bank accounts, with several in names of his peons and maid-servants. But in principle, it should be possible to track down this kind of stuff, even without income tax raids. The EC guidelines state: “Value of Bonds/ Shares/ Debentures as per the latest market value in Stock Exchange in respect of listed companies and as per books in the case of non-listed companies should be given.” Apart from wilful non-declaration, understatement of moveable assets occurs because jewellery is declared at historical costs at which they have been acquired. The guidelines merely state that weight and value of jewellery has to be declared.

If weight is known, it should be a simple matter to revalue jewellery at current market prices. If nothing else, they can be indexed to inflation. By the same token, motor vehicles can be reported at depreciated values. This becomes even more of an issue when it comes to immoveable assets, divided into agricultural land, non-agricultural land, buildings (commercial and residential), houses/ apartments and others (interest in property).

If we raise our eyebrows at perceived under-declaration of assets by MPs, that is primarily because these are undervalued. This is not an MP phenomenon alone, since there is consistent undervaluation of property in registration deeds, partly driven by tax evasion motives and partly by high stamp duties. The point is that present EC guidelines make no attempt to link these to market prices, unlike bonds/ shares/ debentures. Once one accepts that this should be done, one can figure out ways of doing it.

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While avoiding subjectivity, it is possible to objectively determine current market prices for immoveable assets too. As is the case with circle rates, there will continue to be undervaluation. But at least the quantum of undervaluation will decrease.”

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