A conference of electoral officers and administrative officials to be held in Goa will discuss monitoring of election-related expenditure and working out effective means to tackle excessive use of money power during the polls.'The conference will deliberate on various election-related issues. The aim of the conference will be to put together a comprehensive document on best electoral practices in the country,' said Election Commission Director General Akshay Rauth, reports Yahoo News.
Read the whole article:
Panaji, Aug 29 (IANS) Monitoring of election-related expenditure and working out effective means to tackle excessive use of money power during the polls will be among the major issues to be deliberated on at a conference of electoral officers and administrative officials to be held in Goa Tuesday-Wednesday, a senior Election Commission official said Sunday.
Election Commission Director General Akshay Rauth said that Chief Election Commissioner S.Y. Quraishi will also attend the two-day conference.
'The conference will deliberate on various election-related issues. The aim of the conference will be to put together a comprehensive document on best electoral practices in the country,' Rauth said.
'One of the major issues of focus is to monitor election-related expenditure and tackling money power,' the official also said.
The conference will be attended by district magistrates and police superintendents from Goa, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and other union territories located in western India, apart from other electoral officers from the respective states.
'District magistrates and district superintendent are officials who actually conduct elections on ground. They will be giving us inputs on the most effective electoral practices during the conference,' Rauth said.
Read the article on Miracle of Democracy.
Showing posts with label Elections. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Elections. Show all posts
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Rajasthan: Local elections to 126 civic bodies on 18 August
Elections for the 126 civic bodies, would be held in the Jaipur state on Wednesday. More than 35,000 EVM's(Electronic Voting Machines) will be used in the poll. The votes will be counted on August 20th, reports The Times Of India.
Read the whole article here:
JAIPUR: Elections for the 126 civic bodies, including a municipal corporation and two municipal councils, would be held in the state on Wednesday.
The votes would be cast between 7 am and 5 pm. The state election commission has set up 4,142 polling stations in areas where the elections are scheduled. Over 35,000 electronic voting machines will be used in the polls. The government has declared a holiday in the constituencies going for polls.
Counting of votes will be held on August 20. Election for vice-chairmen and deputy mayors will be held on August 21.
The state police have made elaborate arrangements to ensure a free and fair polls, said an official.
Read the article on Miracle of Democracy.
Read the whole article here:
JAIPUR: Elections for the 126 civic bodies, including a municipal corporation and two municipal councils, would be held in the state on Wednesday.
The votes would be cast between 7 am and 5 pm. The state election commission has set up 4,142 polling stations in areas where the elections are scheduled. Over 35,000 electronic voting machines will be used in the polls. The government has declared a holiday in the constituencies going for polls.
Counting of votes will be held on August 20. Election for vice-chairmen and deputy mayors will be held on August 21.
The state police have made elaborate arrangements to ensure a free and fair polls, said an official.
Read the article on Miracle of Democracy.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Non-voting should be an embarrassment, says new CEC, S Y Quraishi
CE designate SY Quraishi said that non voting should be an embarrassment.He said that the health of the electoral roll shows the health of democracy. quraishi wants the work of issuing photo-ID cards to be expedited. Pappu campaign in Delhi worked well, he said.
This article titled "Non-voting should be an embarrassment, says new CEC, S Y Qureshi" was published in The Times of India on July 29th 2010.
After four years in the Election Commission, CEC-designate SY Quraishi has a clear idea of the priorities and concerns that he would like to address over the next two years.
Notwithstanding repeated attempts by various political parties and some civil society groups, Quraishi swears by Electronic Voting Machines and sees no reason why they should be done away with. But he is open to evolving additional checks to reduce chances of their abuse. He is also happy with the effectiveness of the model code of conduct and would not like it to be codified.
Quraishi is happy with the electoral reforms carried out by the government but would like that the others are also dealt with. He also thanks the Supreme Court for guarding neutrality of EC and insulating it from political pressure.
"I have no new wheel to invent," Quraishi said, speaking to TOI, a day after the formal announcement of his appointment as CEC. What tops is his list is voter education, something that he has been closely involved with in the EC for the past two years. He even got a separate division that works for larger participation of people. "I often say that the health of the electoral roll shows the health of democracy. If feasible, I would like to see the day when a citizen's charter is prepared which says that if any citizen is missing from the electoral roll we should fine ourselves Rs 100 a day for not putting someone on it," he says.
In the next few months, he plans a national consultation on voter participation.
Quraishi would also like to see that the work of issuing photo-ID cards is expedited. "There is no other service in the country that comes to your doorstep," he says.
The CEC-designate is also passionate about working to improve the voter turnout in urban areas. His intervention in Delhi and Jharkhand saw significant increase in the turnout. "People who do not vote are the biggest critics. While scheduling an election in a big city we have to see that it is not on a Monday, otherwise people take it as an extended weekend," he says.
Thankfully, he says, the `Pappu' campaign in Delhi worked well. Also, roping in cricket captain MS Dhoni in Jharkhand saw increase in voting from 51% to 58%. "We want to see that non-voting, instead of a fashion statement, becomes a source of embarrassment," he says.
The expenditure by candidates during elections is another headache and Quraishi wants to set up an expenditure monitoring division that will be manned by Indian Revenue Service officers. "We will staff it properly and give it more teeth," he says.
Another issue he is concerned about is paid news which, he says, is detrimental to democracy. "The phenomenon is not limited to elections. But we would like to appeal to media houses to be more vigilant," he says.
This article titled "Non-voting should be an embarrassment, says new CEC, S Y Qureshi" was published in The Times of India on July 29th 2010.
After four years in the Election Commission, CEC-designate SY Quraishi has a clear idea of the priorities and concerns that he would like to address over the next two years.
Notwithstanding repeated attempts by various political parties and some civil society groups, Quraishi swears by Electronic Voting Machines and sees no reason why they should be done away with. But he is open to evolving additional checks to reduce chances of their abuse. He is also happy with the effectiveness of the model code of conduct and would not like it to be codified.
Quraishi is happy with the electoral reforms carried out by the government but would like that the others are also dealt with. He also thanks the Supreme Court for guarding neutrality of EC and insulating it from political pressure.
"I have no new wheel to invent," Quraishi said, speaking to TOI, a day after the formal announcement of his appointment as CEC. What tops is his list is voter education, something that he has been closely involved with in the EC for the past two years. He even got a separate division that works for larger participation of people. "I often say that the health of the electoral roll shows the health of democracy. If feasible, I would like to see the day when a citizen's charter is prepared which says that if any citizen is missing from the electoral roll we should fine ourselves Rs 100 a day for not putting someone on it," he says.
In the next few months, he plans a national consultation on voter participation.
Quraishi would also like to see that the work of issuing photo-ID cards is expedited. "There is no other service in the country that comes to your doorstep," he says.
The CEC-designate is also passionate about working to improve the voter turnout in urban areas. His intervention in Delhi and Jharkhand saw significant increase in the turnout. "People who do not vote are the biggest critics. While scheduling an election in a big city we have to see that it is not on a Monday, otherwise people take it as an extended weekend," he says.
Thankfully, he says, the `Pappu' campaign in Delhi worked well. Also, roping in cricket captain MS Dhoni in Jharkhand saw increase in voting from 51% to 58%. "We want to see that non-voting, instead of a fashion statement, becomes a source of embarrassment," he says.
The expenditure by candidates during elections is another headache and Quraishi wants to set up an expenditure monitoring division that will be manned by Indian Revenue Service officers. "We will staff it properly and give it more teeth," he says.
Another issue he is concerned about is paid news which, he says, is detrimental to democracy. "The phenomenon is not limited to elections. But we would like to appeal to media houses to be more vigilant," he says.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Analysing the voter behaviour
Why was the south Mumbai turnout worse than in South Delhi, both areas populated by the elite chatterati? explores Swaminathan S Anklesaria Aiyar in the Economic Times.
Why did voters in south Mumbai have a pathetic turnout at 42% whereas other areas in India recorded up to 90%? Why was the south Mumbai turnout worse than in South Delhi, both areas populated by the elite chatterati? There was much hand-wringing on TV channels when polling took place in Mumbai.
Many experts attributed low turnout to the alienation of the elite from the democratic process — the secession of the rich. Other experts extolled the virtues of the poor, who supposedly turned out in larger numbers. You see, said the experts, the poor really prize their vote, since it gives them power that they do not get from income, caste or class. And so the poor turn out in large numbers even as the urban middle class claims to be disgusted by the entire electoral spectacle and finds little reason to vote.
…
If we look at the data on voter turnout in all the states, we find that most theories about voting behaviour fail to hold water. It is not that rival theories suddenly appear. Rather, the range of voting turnout across states, and variations in the same state in different elections, is so large that it defeats any quick analysis.
Does the data of voter turnout validate the thesis that the well-off middle class has a poor turnout, while the poor turn out in huge numbers? Not at all. The lowest turnout in both 2004 and 2009 was in Jammu and Kashmir, a special case showing the continued alienation of the local people from the Indian mainstream. But the second lowest turnout of 44.3% in 2009 was in Bihar, our poorest state. And next lowest comes Uttar Pradesh, another very poor state, with a turnout of 47.2%.
…
The turnout in the National Capital Territory around Delhi was 51.8%, below the all-India average of 56.7%. But does that indicate the relative alienation of the urban middle class? Not at all. The turnout was as high as 65.0% in Chandigarh and 60.0% in Puducherry (which recorded a huge 76.07% turnout in 2004). So any quick generalisation about the urban middle class fails. Indeed, the variation in the turnout in Puducherry between 2004 (60.0%) and 2009 (76.07%) drives home the lesson that completely local phenomena, unrelated to any grand theories of class or caste behaviour, can create enormous variations in turnout.
…
Where was the turnout highest? For reasons that are far from evident, the north-east did very well, with Nagaland topping at 90.2%, and Tripura (83.9%), Sikkim (82.0%) and Manipur (73.9%) close behind. This cannot be explained in terms of caste, class or poverty. Nor can it be said that tribal areas have a high turnout — Jharkhand is close to the bottom, and Mizoram too (an exception to the north-eastern pattern, it recorded just 50.9%).
Among larger states, the Marxist strongholds of West Bengal and Kerala come out on top. The richest state in per capita income, Goa, recorded a turnout just below the national average in 2009 and just above it in 2004. No clear lesson here. The second richest state, Gujarat (47.9%) is near the bottom, sandwiched between two very poor states Rajasthan (48.5%) and UP (47.2%). No clear pattern here either.
Conclusion: we really do not know what drives voter turnout. The huge variations in the same state in different elections suggests that purely local phenomena produce major changes that have nothing to do with grand theories of how the rich and poor behave, or how various castes and classes behave. This is an unacceptable line for instant expert on TV (including myself). But experts need to stop taking themselves so seriously and so say, like Winnie the Pooh “nobody knows, tiddledy-pom.”
Maybe we should treat this issue as one of entertainment rather than class analysis. Here is an excellent example from the internet.
Ten reasons why South Mumbai did not vote
10. Clashed with Salsa class
9. Election whites not drycleaned
8. No candidate a hottie
7. Tony Jethmalani contesting from suburbs... Sigh
6. No valet parking at booth
5. Spotted servant in queue ahead of us
4. Driver did not come
3. Elections over dude, Obama won!
2. No party tackling real issues, eg, reduce Gold Gym rates
1. No home delivery!
Why did voters in south Mumbai have a pathetic turnout at 42% whereas other areas in India recorded up to 90%? Why was the south Mumbai turnout worse than in South Delhi, both areas populated by the elite chatterati? There was much hand-wringing on TV channels when polling took place in Mumbai.
Many experts attributed low turnout to the alienation of the elite from the democratic process — the secession of the rich. Other experts extolled the virtues of the poor, who supposedly turned out in larger numbers. You see, said the experts, the poor really prize their vote, since it gives them power that they do not get from income, caste or class. And so the poor turn out in large numbers even as the urban middle class claims to be disgusted by the entire electoral spectacle and finds little reason to vote.
…
If we look at the data on voter turnout in all the states, we find that most theories about voting behaviour fail to hold water. It is not that rival theories suddenly appear. Rather, the range of voting turnout across states, and variations in the same state in different elections, is so large that it defeats any quick analysis.
Does the data of voter turnout validate the thesis that the well-off middle class has a poor turnout, while the poor turn out in huge numbers? Not at all. The lowest turnout in both 2004 and 2009 was in Jammu and Kashmir, a special case showing the continued alienation of the local people from the Indian mainstream. But the second lowest turnout of 44.3% in 2009 was in Bihar, our poorest state. And next lowest comes Uttar Pradesh, another very poor state, with a turnout of 47.2%.
…
The turnout in the National Capital Territory around Delhi was 51.8%, below the all-India average of 56.7%. But does that indicate the relative alienation of the urban middle class? Not at all. The turnout was as high as 65.0% in Chandigarh and 60.0% in Puducherry (which recorded a huge 76.07% turnout in 2004). So any quick generalisation about the urban middle class fails. Indeed, the variation in the turnout in Puducherry between 2004 (60.0%) and 2009 (76.07%) drives home the lesson that completely local phenomena, unrelated to any grand theories of class or caste behaviour, can create enormous variations in turnout.
…
Where was the turnout highest? For reasons that are far from evident, the north-east did very well, with Nagaland topping at 90.2%, and Tripura (83.9%), Sikkim (82.0%) and Manipur (73.9%) close behind. This cannot be explained in terms of caste, class or poverty. Nor can it be said that tribal areas have a high turnout — Jharkhand is close to the bottom, and Mizoram too (an exception to the north-eastern pattern, it recorded just 50.9%).
Among larger states, the Marxist strongholds of West Bengal and Kerala come out on top. The richest state in per capita income, Goa, recorded a turnout just below the national average in 2009 and just above it in 2004. No clear lesson here. The second richest state, Gujarat (47.9%) is near the bottom, sandwiched between two very poor states Rajasthan (48.5%) and UP (47.2%). No clear pattern here either.
Conclusion: we really do not know what drives voter turnout. The huge variations in the same state in different elections suggests that purely local phenomena produce major changes that have nothing to do with grand theories of how the rich and poor behave, or how various castes and classes behave. This is an unacceptable line for instant expert on TV (including myself). But experts need to stop taking themselves so seriously and so say, like Winnie the Pooh “nobody knows, tiddledy-pom.”
Maybe we should treat this issue as one of entertainment rather than class analysis. Here is an excellent example from the internet.
Ten reasons why South Mumbai did not vote
10. Clashed with Salsa class
9. Election whites not drycleaned
8. No candidate a hottie
7. Tony Jethmalani contesting from suburbs... Sigh
6. No valet parking at booth
5. Spotted servant in queue ahead of us
4. Driver did not come
3. Elections over dude, Obama won!
2. No party tackling real issues, eg, reduce Gold Gym rates
1. No home delivery!
Why Delhi turned up to vote
- They loved the Tata Tea ad
- They saw the Chopras go out, and thought they must overtake the Lancer from left
- Bunty’s girlfriend wanted to when they were going out for some Chinese
- Diwan Saheb on second floor persuaded them. He is jaaaint saactry in DPCC
- Without stable government, real estate will not revive
- Election Commission directly asked Pappu. So nice of them
- Grandfather started talking on Partition, and they had to run
- Auntyji hoped some TV crew will come and take a soundbite
- Baba Ramdev said it is good for health
And finally, - They had to beat the Bambaiyaas. Izzat ka sawaal hai, hainji?
Making sense of verdict 2009
Making sense of the intent behind the election results is a tricky exercise. In some senses, what we are seeing is a ripening of identity politics into a more complex, fractured and mature phenomenon. There are signs that while identity politics continues to flourish, there seems to be an evolution in how it comes into play, writes Santosh Desai in the Times of India.
As I argued last week in this column, making sense of the intent behind the election results is a tricky exercise. For elections in India are the only occasion when we understand the full import of what it means to be a country with over a billion people, for here everyone above 18 gets to participate.
In almost no other instance when we draw generalized conclusions are we compressing so much diversity into singularity. In this election, over 400 million people exercised their franchise; in effect we are trying to find something common across such a staggering number of data points. Attempts to find simple unifying explanations are thus fraught with danger; perhaps a more useful way of looking at a complex phenomenon like elections in India is to identify some broad themes which emerge from the outcome without necessarily explaining exactly why we saw the outcome we did. Even these are open to challenge in some cases and nuance in most.
In some senses, what we are seeing is a ripening of identity politics into a more complex, fractured and mature phenomenon. There are signs that while identity politics continues to flourish, there seems to be an evolution in how it comes into play. The success of regional players who have carved out constituencies based on identity affiliations and have so far practised a patronage-based system and direct rewards has led to the gradual increase in the number of such players. Regionalization has bred more regionalization, and this fracturing of the electoral base has cut into the vote share of the historically stronger regional parties.
We have seen this factor at play in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh & Tamil Nadu, where the Shiv Sena, TDP and AIADMK have respectively lost seats on this account. The fragmentation of the vote base also means that the national parties seem to look more attractive, in relative terms. As vote share of regional parties gets distributed among a larger number of claimants, national parties stand to gain even if their vote share remains static.
The other emerging dimension of the evolution of identity politics is the recognition of the role played by governance. The delivery of some governance creates a demand for more and leads to an acknowledgement of the need for development to be broad-based and inclusive rather than focused on specific communities and groups.
Sops to identity clusters do not necessarily create widespread development and it appears that there might be some recognition of this. Nitish Kumar’s remarkable success points to the limits of Lalu Yadav’s stated belief that development does not win elections. However, this is by no means a negation of the power of identity; Mayawati may have lost seats but her vote share has increased. Writing her brand of politics off would be an act of wilful short-sightedness.
It would appear that continuity, more than stability, might have been the more important consideration in these elections. This is linked to the fact that all of India has begun to see some signs, however small, of progress. In the absence of a clear alternative, continuing with the existing regime becomes a default option. This is clearly by no means a defining theme but does contribute to the overall trend. Given this, parties need to communicate the appearance of an ability to govern, something the Congress might have done better this time thanks to the slant of their campaign and the collective personae of their leaders.
There is no reason to believe that national parties have regained favour with the voters, but it does seem that the Congress has been more successful in regaining its Centrist space to a certain extent this time around. This was probably due to the combined effect of being seen as relatively stronger as against the regional parties for reasons outlined above as well as its attempts to deliver on its promise of inclusive growth. The focus on rural India in its last five years created an aura of intention even if effect was not fully delivered.
Eventually, election campaigns get decoded as residues of stories; most of us, especially the uncommitted voters, don’t remember precise details or choose on the basis of specific issues as much as on a general sense of appropriateness. The Congress story seemed to have its heart in the right place, with the combination of actions, people, sounds it emitted with the structural forces on the ground multiplying the impact of this slant towards the party.
The return of any Centrist force is a significant development; it remains to be seen if this is indeed a trend or merely a local aberration. But it does seem as if the growing fragmentation of the polity and the attendant issues of the lack of a national perspective might not be quite the inexorable forces they seemed. That might well be the best news we have heard from these elections.
Read the original article here.
As I argued last week in this column, making sense of the intent behind the election results is a tricky exercise. For elections in India are the only occasion when we understand the full import of what it means to be a country with over a billion people, for here everyone above 18 gets to participate.
In almost no other instance when we draw generalized conclusions are we compressing so much diversity into singularity. In this election, over 400 million people exercised their franchise; in effect we are trying to find something common across such a staggering number of data points. Attempts to find simple unifying explanations are thus fraught with danger; perhaps a more useful way of looking at a complex phenomenon like elections in India is to identify some broad themes which emerge from the outcome without necessarily explaining exactly why we saw the outcome we did. Even these are open to challenge in some cases and nuance in most.
In some senses, what we are seeing is a ripening of identity politics into a more complex, fractured and mature phenomenon. There are signs that while identity politics continues to flourish, there seems to be an evolution in how it comes into play. The success of regional players who have carved out constituencies based on identity affiliations and have so far practised a patronage-based system and direct rewards has led to the gradual increase in the number of such players. Regionalization has bred more regionalization, and this fracturing of the electoral base has cut into the vote share of the historically stronger regional parties.
We have seen this factor at play in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh & Tamil Nadu, where the Shiv Sena, TDP and AIADMK have respectively lost seats on this account. The fragmentation of the vote base also means that the national parties seem to look more attractive, in relative terms. As vote share of regional parties gets distributed among a larger number of claimants, national parties stand to gain even if their vote share remains static.
The other emerging dimension of the evolution of identity politics is the recognition of the role played by governance. The delivery of some governance creates a demand for more and leads to an acknowledgement of the need for development to be broad-based and inclusive rather than focused on specific communities and groups.
Sops to identity clusters do not necessarily create widespread development and it appears that there might be some recognition of this. Nitish Kumar’s remarkable success points to the limits of Lalu Yadav’s stated belief that development does not win elections. However, this is by no means a negation of the power of identity; Mayawati may have lost seats but her vote share has increased. Writing her brand of politics off would be an act of wilful short-sightedness.
It would appear that continuity, more than stability, might have been the more important consideration in these elections. This is linked to the fact that all of India has begun to see some signs, however small, of progress. In the absence of a clear alternative, continuing with the existing regime becomes a default option. This is clearly by no means a defining theme but does contribute to the overall trend. Given this, parties need to communicate the appearance of an ability to govern, something the Congress might have done better this time thanks to the slant of their campaign and the collective personae of their leaders.
There is no reason to believe that national parties have regained favour with the voters, but it does seem that the Congress has been more successful in regaining its Centrist space to a certain extent this time around. This was probably due to the combined effect of being seen as relatively stronger as against the regional parties for reasons outlined above as well as its attempts to deliver on its promise of inclusive growth. The focus on rural India in its last five years created an aura of intention even if effect was not fully delivered.
Eventually, election campaigns get decoded as residues of stories; most of us, especially the uncommitted voters, don’t remember precise details or choose on the basis of specific issues as much as on a general sense of appropriateness. The Congress story seemed to have its heart in the right place, with the combination of actions, people, sounds it emitted with the structural forces on the ground multiplying the impact of this slant towards the party.
The return of any Centrist force is a significant development; it remains to be seen if this is indeed a trend or merely a local aberration. But it does seem as if the growing fragmentation of the polity and the attendant issues of the lack of a national perspective might not be quite the inexorable forces they seemed. That might well be the best news we have heard from these elections.
Read the original article here.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Govt plans a slum free India in the next 5-year term
Over 15 lakh houses are under construction for the urban poor and there is a need to focus on urban housing programmes for the slum dwellers, reports the Indian Express.
The UPA government unveiled its plan for introducing Rajiv Awas Yojana for slum dwellers under JNNURM on the lines of Indira Awas Yojana for rural poor.
"The scheme for affordable housing through partnership and the scheme for interest subsidy for urban housing would be dovetailed into the Rajiv Awas Yojana which would extend support under JNNURM to states that are willing to assign property rights to people living in slum areas," President Pratibha Patil said while addressing Parliament.
"My government's effort would be to create a slum free India in five years through Rajiv Awas Yojana," she said.
Maintaining that infrastructure development under the flagship programme of JNNURM would continue, she said the government would continue to focus on infrastructure, basic services and governance reform and increase support to cities to upgrade public transport.
Over 15 lakh houses are under construction for the urban poor and there is a need to focus on urban housing programmes for the slum dwellers, she said.
"The JNNURM with approval of projects of nearly 50,000 crore in the last four years is reshaping our cities and has been widely welcomed," Patil said.
The government would take steps within the next 100 days to facilitate a voluntary technical corps of professionals in all urban areas through JNNURM to support the development activities.
Read the original article here.
The UPA government unveiled its plan for introducing Rajiv Awas Yojana for slum dwellers under JNNURM on the lines of Indira Awas Yojana for rural poor.
"The scheme for affordable housing through partnership and the scheme for interest subsidy for urban housing would be dovetailed into the Rajiv Awas Yojana which would extend support under JNNURM to states that are willing to assign property rights to people living in slum areas," President Pratibha Patil said while addressing Parliament.
"My government's effort would be to create a slum free India in five years through Rajiv Awas Yojana," she said.
Maintaining that infrastructure development under the flagship programme of JNNURM would continue, she said the government would continue to focus on infrastructure, basic services and governance reform and increase support to cities to upgrade public transport.
Over 15 lakh houses are under construction for the urban poor and there is a need to focus on urban housing programmes for the slum dwellers, she said.
"The JNNURM with approval of projects of nearly 50,000 crore in the last four years is reshaping our cities and has been widely welcomed," Patil said.
The government would take steps within the next 100 days to facilitate a voluntary technical corps of professionals in all urban areas through JNNURM to support the development activities.
Read the original article here.
Meira Kumar is India’s first woman Speaker
3 Jun 2009
As soon as the Lok Sabha session began, Sonia Gandhi proposed Meira Kumar as the Speaker of the new House. Not originally her party's choice, Kumar found strong support from the Congress leadership on two counts – a woman, she carries a rich dalit legacy, reports Times of India.
Congress candidate Meira Kumar was elected Speaker of the 15 th Lok Sabha unanimously on Wednesday.
As soon as the Lok Sabha session began, Sonia, according to the agenda, proposed Kumar as the Speaker of the new House. Her name was seconded by Leader of Opposition L K Advani and other political leaders. Both Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Advani then accompanied her to the Speaker's chair completing the formality.
With every side deciding to endorse her candidature, her election to the top post was a unanimous affair.
...
Kumar, who was part of the delegation visiting the secretary general, later termed her ascent to the Speaker's chair as a historic moment. "It is both historic and overwhelming," she told reporters. A five-time MP, she resigned as minister for water resources after Congress backed her for Speaker.
Not originally her party's choice, Kumar found strong support from the Congress leadership on two counts - a woman, she carries a rich dalit legacy.
Precisely for this reason, the BJP was reluctant to oppose her. For its part, the Opposition party moved a notch up in the game of identity politics by proposing a tribal – Karia Munda – for the deputy Speaker's post.
After Congress scored on the empowerment quotient naming Dalit woman leader Meira Kumar as UPA's nominee for the Speaker's post, BJP played the tribal card by selecting its veteran MP from Jharkhand Karia Munda as its candidate for Deputy Speaker.
BJP's central parliamentary board took the decision at a meeting after the government's proposal that the deputy Speaker's post be offered to the main Opposition.
Seventy two-year-old Munda was a minister in the Morarji Desai government and later in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee ministry. When asked whether Munda's candidature was aimed at winning tribal support for the party, BJP leader Jaitley said, "It is true that Munda belongs to the ST community, but along with that he has vast legislative experience and this decision was made considering his seniority."
Read the original article here.
As soon as the Lok Sabha session began, Sonia Gandhi proposed Meira Kumar as the Speaker of the new House. Not originally her party's choice, Kumar found strong support from the Congress leadership on two counts – a woman, she carries a rich dalit legacy, reports Times of India.
Congress candidate Meira Kumar was elected Speaker of the 15 th Lok Sabha unanimously on Wednesday.
As soon as the Lok Sabha session began, Sonia, according to the agenda, proposed Kumar as the Speaker of the new House. Her name was seconded by Leader of Opposition L K Advani and other political leaders. Both Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Advani then accompanied her to the Speaker's chair completing the formality.
With every side deciding to endorse her candidature, her election to the top post was a unanimous affair.
...
Kumar, who was part of the delegation visiting the secretary general, later termed her ascent to the Speaker's chair as a historic moment. "It is both historic and overwhelming," she told reporters. A five-time MP, she resigned as minister for water resources after Congress backed her for Speaker.
Not originally her party's choice, Kumar found strong support from the Congress leadership on two counts - a woman, she carries a rich dalit legacy.
Precisely for this reason, the BJP was reluctant to oppose her. For its part, the Opposition party moved a notch up in the game of identity politics by proposing a tribal – Karia Munda – for the deputy Speaker's post.
After Congress scored on the empowerment quotient naming Dalit woman leader Meira Kumar as UPA's nominee for the Speaker's post, BJP played the tribal card by selecting its veteran MP from Jharkhand Karia Munda as its candidate for Deputy Speaker.
BJP's central parliamentary board took the decision at a meeting after the government's proposal that the deputy Speaker's post be offered to the main Opposition.
Seventy two-year-old Munda was a minister in the Morarji Desai government and later in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee ministry. When asked whether Munda's candidature was aimed at winning tribal support for the party, BJP leader Jaitley said, "It is true that Munda belongs to the ST community, but along with that he has vast legislative experience and this decision was made considering his seniority."
Read the original article here.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Highest number of women MPs in the 15th Lok Sabha
A record 59 women MPs have been elected to the new Lok Sabha – the highest since independence, and 17 of them are less than 40 years-old, reports The Hindu.
A record 59 women MPs have been elected to the new Lok Sabha – the highest since independence, and 17 of them are less than 40 years-old.
According to PRS Legislative Research, an organisation that aims to strengthen legislative debate, among the 59 women MPs in the 15th Lok Sabha, a majority - 23 - are from the Congress. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has 13 women members.
Uttar Pradesh has the maximum number of 13 women MPs to represent the most populous state. It is followed by West Bengal with seven. … In all, 556 women had contested the 2009 general elections, of which 59 were elected.
The lowest percentage of women representations was in the sixth Lok Sabha (1977-80) when there were only 3.8 percent women MPs.
The first Lok Sabha (1952-57) had 4.4 percent women MPs. In the 13th Lok Sabha (1999-2004), the figure was 9.2 percent, the research group said.
The research group said that women representatives in the age group of 40 to 60 has gone down. Now, less than 57 percent of women fall in this category as compared to over 73 percent in 2004. But this time, women over 60 make a 13.80 percent, while it was a mere 9.8 percent in the 14th Lok Sabha.
According the PRS, the total percentage of MPs this time in the age group of 41-55 years has been the second lowest in the last 14 sessions with only 43 percent members belonging to the age group.
Read the original article here.
A record 59 women MPs have been elected to the new Lok Sabha – the highest since independence, and 17 of them are less than 40 years-old.
According to PRS Legislative Research, an organisation that aims to strengthen legislative debate, among the 59 women MPs in the 15th Lok Sabha, a majority - 23 - are from the Congress. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has 13 women members.
Uttar Pradesh has the maximum number of 13 women MPs to represent the most populous state. It is followed by West Bengal with seven. … In all, 556 women had contested the 2009 general elections, of which 59 were elected.
The lowest percentage of women representations was in the sixth Lok Sabha (1977-80) when there were only 3.8 percent women MPs.
The first Lok Sabha (1952-57) had 4.4 percent women MPs. In the 13th Lok Sabha (1999-2004), the figure was 9.2 percent, the research group said.
The research group said that women representatives in the age group of 40 to 60 has gone down. Now, less than 57 percent of women fall in this category as compared to over 73 percent in 2004. But this time, women over 60 make a 13.80 percent, while it was a mere 9.8 percent in the 14th Lok Sabha.
According the PRS, the total percentage of MPs this time in the age group of 41-55 years has been the second lowest in the last 14 sessions with only 43 percent members belonging to the age group.
Read the original article here.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
332 parties failed to open their account in the polls
A total of 369 parties, including seven national parties, had fielded candidates in the elections 2009. However, the winners are only from 37 different parties, reports Times of India.
The Lok Sabha elections have spelt doom for 332 political parties which failed to open their account.
A total of 369 parties, including seven national parties, had fielded candidates in the elections. However, winners in this year's polls are from 37 different parties, according to the list of winning candidates brought out by the Election Commission. Candidates from 38 parties had won the elections in the last general polls.
Eight parties, whose candidates had won the elections last time, have drawn a blank this year. They include, Pattali Makkal Katchi and Lok Janshakti Party.
Majority of the parties, which failed to open their account, had participated in the elections for the first time this year.
Over 1000 parties were registered with the EC before this year's polls. However, 369 parties had fielded candidates in this year's polls. A total of 8070 candidates fought the elections.
At the time of 2004 polls, there were 215 parties, including six national parties and 36 state parties. However, their number this year increased to 1027 including seven national parties, 40 state parties and 980 recognized unregistered parties.
Read the original article here.
The Lok Sabha elections have spelt doom for 332 political parties which failed to open their account.
A total of 369 parties, including seven national parties, had fielded candidates in the elections. However, winners in this year's polls are from 37 different parties, according to the list of winning candidates brought out by the Election Commission. Candidates from 38 parties had won the elections in the last general polls.
Eight parties, whose candidates had won the elections last time, have drawn a blank this year. They include, Pattali Makkal Katchi and Lok Janshakti Party.
Majority of the parties, which failed to open their account, had participated in the elections for the first time this year.
Over 1000 parties were registered with the EC before this year's polls. However, 369 parties had fielded candidates in this year's polls. A total of 8070 candidates fought the elections.
At the time of 2004 polls, there were 215 parties, including six national parties and 36 state parties. However, their number this year increased to 1027 including seven national parties, 40 state parties and 980 recognized unregistered parties.
Read the original article here.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Calculating assets of politicians is difficult
Calculating the wealth of our politicians is far from easy. Firstly, it’s virtually impossible to collect information for all the 8,070 candidates who contested this Lok Sabha election, reports The Mint.
Calculating the wealth of our politicians is far from easy. Firstly, it’s virtually impossible to collect information for all the 8,070 candidates who contested this Lok Sabha election.
When Empowering India, an online initiative of New Delhi’s Liberty Institute, tried to compile this data, the organization found that there were about 470 candidates whose affidavits were not yet available on the various election offices’ websites.
Another 400 or so candidates had filed affidavits that were illegible or incomplete. Some of these didn’t declare any assets at all.
Check the "Assets Arithmetic"
But even if you leave out these 800+ affidavits, before calculating the average assets of our politicians, one thing is clear: Our politicians’ wealth points only one way—up.
Read the full story here.
Calculating the wealth of our politicians is far from easy. Firstly, it’s virtually impossible to collect information for all the 8,070 candidates who contested this Lok Sabha election.
When Empowering India, an online initiative of New Delhi’s Liberty Institute, tried to compile this data, the organization found that there were about 470 candidates whose affidavits were not yet available on the various election offices’ websites.
Another 400 or so candidates had filed affidavits that were illegible or incomplete. Some of these didn’t declare any assets at all.
Check the "Assets Arithmetic"
But even if you leave out these 800+ affidavits, before calculating the average assets of our politicians, one thing is clear: Our politicians’ wealth points only one way—up.
Read the full story here.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Political campaigns suffer as India Inc tightens its purse strings
With a recession-hit India Inc tightening its purse strings, there has been a significant dip in corporate contributions to the election campaign chests of political parties. Estimates vary, but the consensus is that corporate donations are down by at least 20% this time.
The number of companies volunteering financial support has come down, while the others are reluctant to fully redeem their commitments. There are also those who have wriggled out of commitments, citing their plunging bottom line.
Political parties claim that the hit is bigger than what companies themselves say. Parties say corporate contributions are down 35%-40%, although industrialists insist that ''political demand is inelastic'', and despite these trying times, they have cut back by just 20%.
Said a senior Congress leader: ''We are having a tough time. These companies have to be reminded. Few are coming forward on their own.'' BJP sources agreed on the trend but righteously claimed that they could make do as they were not planning to run a lavish campaign.
Sources in the Samajwadi Party, which is known for its good links with industrial houses, also said corporate support was down 40% from the last time. ''But we will not be affected as we have committed supporters,'' claimed a SP leader.
Read the full article here.
The number of companies volunteering financial support has come down, while the others are reluctant to fully redeem their commitments. There are also those who have wriggled out of commitments, citing their plunging bottom line.
Political parties claim that the hit is bigger than what companies themselves say. Parties say corporate contributions are down 35%-40%, although industrialists insist that ''political demand is inelastic'', and despite these trying times, they have cut back by just 20%.
Said a senior Congress leader: ''We are having a tough time. These companies have to be reminded. Few are coming forward on their own.'' BJP sources agreed on the trend but righteously claimed that they could make do as they were not planning to run a lavish campaign.
Sources in the Samajwadi Party, which is known for its good links with industrial houses, also said corporate support was down 40% from the last time. ''But we will not be affected as we have committed supporters,'' claimed a SP leader.
Read the full article here.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Income Tax officers after rich candidates in Andhra Pradesh
An article from the Times of India.
Apparently stunned by the high level of income that has been disclosed by some of the candidates in their election affidavits, the income-tax department has suo motu decided to take up 50 such affidavits and investigate further to ascertain whether I-T for the same has been paid for.
...
Among the 50 such affidavits they are taking up for immediate action include that of Congress candidate from Vijayawada Lok Sabha seat Lagadapati Rajagopal (Rs 229 crore); PRP president Chiranjeevi, candidate from Tirupati and Palakole assembly seats (Rs 88 crore); PRP general secretary and Anakapalli LS seat candidate Allu Aravind (Rs 24 crore); Nizamabad LS Congress candidate Madhu Yaskhi Goud and TDP’s nominee from Kadapa LS seat P Srikanth Reddy (Rs 30 crore each).
I-T sources said the objective of taking these affidavits for scrutiny was to find out whether the candidates were paying income tax for the assets they have declared. “But we will also probe the assets of the family members and that will help us unearth black money or assets for which tax has not been paid. Normally, such scrutiny will take at least two years to be completed. But in these 50-odd cases, we plan to complete the probe in three months,” one official said.
Read the full article here.
Apparently stunned by the high level of income that has been disclosed by some of the candidates in their election affidavits, the income-tax department has suo motu decided to take up 50 such affidavits and investigate further to ascertain whether I-T for the same has been paid for.
...
Among the 50 such affidavits they are taking up for immediate action include that of Congress candidate from Vijayawada Lok Sabha seat Lagadapati Rajagopal (Rs 229 crore); PRP president Chiranjeevi, candidate from Tirupati and Palakole assembly seats (Rs 88 crore); PRP general secretary and Anakapalli LS seat candidate Allu Aravind (Rs 24 crore); Nizamabad LS Congress candidate Madhu Yaskhi Goud and TDP’s nominee from Kadapa LS seat P Srikanth Reddy (Rs 30 crore each).
I-T sources said the objective of taking these affidavits for scrutiny was to find out whether the candidates were paying income tax for the assets they have declared. “But we will also probe the assets of the family members and that will help us unearth black money or assets for which tax has not been paid. Normally, such scrutiny will take at least two years to be completed. But in these 50-odd cases, we plan to complete the probe in three months,” one official said.
Read the full article here.
Election Commission rules that columns in affidavits cannot be left blank
To prevent candidates from suppressing facts in their affidavits, the Election Commission has ruled that the nominees cannot leave any column of the form blank, a top electoral officer said. But he made it clear that contestants cannot be barred from the poll fray for giving false information in the affidavit. As per a Supreme Court ruling, candidature cannot be cancelled for giving false information or suppressing facts, reports Yahoo.com.
Nomination cannot be cancelled for false affidavit
To prevent candidates from suppressing facts in their affidavits, the Election Commission has ruled that the nominees cannot leave any column of the form blank, a top electoral officer said here Monday.
But he made it clear that contestants cannot be barred from the poll fray for giving false information in the affidavit.
'The EC has come out with two advisories on candidates' affidavits. Firstly, the affidavits have to be typed and not handwritten. This was done as a section of candidates in some states used to give handwritten affidavits, which were illegible,' said West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Debasish Sen.
'Another problem was suppression of information by some candidates, who used to leave some of the columns blank. So, in another advisory, the EC has said none of the columns can be left vacant. The candidate has to write at least 'nil' or 'not applicable' in those columns in which he has nothing to add,' Sen said after inaugurating the state chapter of the National Election Watch.
But as per a Supreme Court ruling, candidature cannot be cancelled for giving false information or suppressing facts. 'This is because the system of filing affidavit was introduced much after the electoral laws came into force'.
Read more on Indian Elections here.
Nomination cannot be cancelled for false affidavit
To prevent candidates from suppressing facts in their affidavits, the Election Commission has ruled that the nominees cannot leave any column of the form blank, a top electoral officer said here Monday.
But he made it clear that contestants cannot be barred from the poll fray for giving false information in the affidavit.
'The EC has come out with two advisories on candidates' affidavits. Firstly, the affidavits have to be typed and not handwritten. This was done as a section of candidates in some states used to give handwritten affidavits, which were illegible,' said West Bengal Chief Electoral Officer Debasish Sen.
'Another problem was suppression of information by some candidates, who used to leave some of the columns blank. So, in another advisory, the EC has said none of the columns can be left vacant. The candidate has to write at least 'nil' or 'not applicable' in those columns in which he has nothing to add,' Sen said after inaugurating the state chapter of the National Election Watch.
But as per a Supreme Court ruling, candidature cannot be cancelled for giving false information or suppressing facts. 'This is because the system of filing affidavit was introduced much after the electoral laws came into force'.
Read more on Indian Elections here.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Some thoughts on electoral reforms in India
Below is a piece mailed to us by a citizen - Mr Chudamani Ratnam. These are good, debatable points. We put it here for the open discussions, knowing that you would have lots to contribute. Take a look and do respond.
Electoral Reforms in India
It appears that there are some 700+ Mayors of towns in the USA. Some time ago, around 2006-7, at their annual conclave, under the Chairmanship of the Mayor of Seattle, they adopted a resolution to implement certain far reaching environmental protection measures. This was at a time when the US Federal Administration had a somewhat negative attitude towards such green policies. I e-mailed the Mayor of Seattle congratulating the mayors on their wisdom and went on to suggest that democracy in the USA would be better served if the Houses of Congress were abolished and the country governed by a President elected by the Mayors. Unfortunately I didn’t get a reply.
Leading on from such ideas it seems to me that elections in their present form in India should be abolished. People would only vote to elect their Panchayats, redefined to include municipal corporations, etc. These bodies would form an electoral college to elect the state assemblies. Candidates for the state assemblies need not be members of the Panchayat, but should be voters in that state. At the next higher level, the state assemblies would form another electoral college to elect the national assembly, i.e. Lok Sabha, not unlike the way the present Rajya Sabha is elected. The Lok Sabha would elect the Prime Minister and Cabinet, who need not be members of the Lok Sabha, again bearing some similarities to the US system.
It may be wishful thinking on my part but I can see some advantages over the present Indian system. To start with this proposal would be administratively much simpler and the deployment of thousands of paramilitary forces may not be needed. The criminal element would be hopefully eliminated beyond the panchayat stage and politics would be accessible to a better class of citizen. More sophisticated electoral processes such as the second transferable vote can be implemented at the electoral college stages. Lastly money may no longer be a factor in politics.
~ By Chudamani Ratnam
Electoral Reforms in India
It appears that there are some 700+ Mayors of towns in the USA. Some time ago, around 2006-7, at their annual conclave, under the Chairmanship of the Mayor of Seattle, they adopted a resolution to implement certain far reaching environmental protection measures. This was at a time when the US Federal Administration had a somewhat negative attitude towards such green policies. I e-mailed the Mayor of Seattle congratulating the mayors on their wisdom and went on to suggest that democracy in the USA would be better served if the Houses of Congress were abolished and the country governed by a President elected by the Mayors. Unfortunately I didn’t get a reply.
Leading on from such ideas it seems to me that elections in their present form in India should be abolished. People would only vote to elect their Panchayats, redefined to include municipal corporations, etc. These bodies would form an electoral college to elect the state assemblies. Candidates for the state assemblies need not be members of the Panchayat, but should be voters in that state. At the next higher level, the state assemblies would form another electoral college to elect the national assembly, i.e. Lok Sabha, not unlike the way the present Rajya Sabha is elected. The Lok Sabha would elect the Prime Minister and Cabinet, who need not be members of the Lok Sabha, again bearing some similarities to the US system.
It may be wishful thinking on my part but I can see some advantages over the present Indian system. To start with this proposal would be administratively much simpler and the deployment of thousands of paramilitary forces may not be needed. The criminal element would be hopefully eliminated beyond the panchayat stage and politics would be accessible to a better class of citizen. More sophisticated electoral processes such as the second transferable vote can be implemented at the electoral college stages. Lastly money may no longer be a factor in politics.
~ By Chudamani Ratnam
Crores poured for the General Elections 2009
Spending is zooming as it has become a ritual to bribe voters
- Overall estimated expense on election 2009: Rs 10,000-16,000 crore. Doesn't include non-cash "gifts", about 25% is cash bribes
- In a constituency with 4 candidates: Rs 1 crore approximate authorised expenditure. Rs 5-16 crore actual expenditure
- Cash bribes from candidates spent on liquor, repaying loans, daily expenses and other essentials that cannot wait—usually unproductive expenditure
- The average cash handout is expected to rise, according to a CMS survey, from Rs 100 per person in election 2004, to Rs 500 this year
- Election expenses likely to be about 0.2% of the GDP in 2009; not significant by itself, except that the entire sum is spent over just one month
Some describe it as the third stimulus package, after two official ones, for an economy that's hardly in the pink of health.
Others dismiss it as a national phenomenon. Either way, as India prepares to vote in a new government this May, the polls are also a once-in-a-five-year chance for many voters to make a quick buck. This year, election-related expenses—official and unofficial—are expected to zoom: From Rs 4,500 crore in 2004, to anything between Rs 10,000-16,000 crore.
And yes, urban as well as rural voters are expected to line up for illegal cash benefits and other freebies. Of this, 80 per cent is likely to be spe nt out of the pocket of individual candidates (the Election Commission limits their pre-poll expenses to Rs 25 lakh). "It's an under-estimation, but we believe that each successful candidate could spend Rs 5 crore in his or her constituency. It was half this figure in the previous national vote," says N. Bhaskara Rao, chairman of the Centre for Media Studies (CMS), an independent think-tank.
Add spending by minor candidates, and the numbers grow exponentially for each constituency.
There are 543 constituencies for the Lok Sabha, and a major one, with three or more candidates, could be worth Rs 5-16 crore in expenses. The estimates, made by CMS, are based on two surveys it conducted in 2007 and 2008 across income groups. "The spending—Rs 10,000 crore, which is the minimum we expect—is unimaginable. It's never happened at this scale before," says Rao.
What's worrying is that politicians don't bribe in the actual hope of winning. "I don't believe that Indian voters are electing the leader who pays them the most money, or selecting one who gives them more immediate gratification—a TV set, a sari or blankets," says Bhibhu Mohapatra, a Fellow with the India Development Foundation (IDF), a research outfit based in New Delhi.
Mohapatra thinks that pre-election bribes have more cynical underpinnings: "It has become a ritual, a habit, to bribe voters. A candidate cannot ensure his victory by giving a freebie or a cash 'reward'. But by not bribing at all, he ensures defeat in electoral sweepstakes," says Mohapatra. In its own study conducted in New Delhi prior to elections to the Delhi assembly last year, IDF found that almost all slum clusters and colonies were supplied with liquor and cash, in some places free food and snacks. In most clusters, the community elder was approached with the bribe.
Interestingly, the report says, "This was practised by at least three national parties in Delhi," implying that even candidates who don't expect to win use liquor "pouches" and cash—of Rs 500 per voter or thereabouts—only to ensure they stay in the running.
IDF's survey was conducted between October 18 and November 24, 2008; 3,000 households from the Below Poverty Line (BPL) and Above Poverty Line (APL) categories were interviewed for it."If Rs 25 lakh is the officially allowed limit, and Rs 5 crore is actually being spent, then the difference is what we call black or illegally generated income by politicians and parties," says Prof Arun Kumar of Jawaharlal Nehru University, who has written extensively on the black economy and authored a book on the subject. "To the extent that TV sets are given away and saris are bought for prospective women voters, we could see (the bribes) as a redistribution of that illegal wealth," he says.With that much money floating in the system, it wouldn't be misplaced to see larger benefits, or at least some cost-savings, for the voting public.
Unfortunately, the benefits of these bribes are too thinly spread out—not targeted at all, say economists—and ultimately, the sums are negligible compared with the size of the economy. They will not create any "stimulus" at all, avers Kumar. At Rs 10,000 crore, the electoral spending is about 0.2 per cent of the country's Rs 50 lakh crore GDP. "Hardly anything, it's basically a waste," he says. Happily, at least some proportion of the Rs 10,000-16,000 crore will go into purchasing and running services—the printers, transporters, counters, election watchers, messengers, guards, billboard painters—that will actually be useful for running the election itself.
Read the full article here.
Google empowering India!
India's 15th general election: tools for citizen empowerment
At Google, we believe information is fundamentally empowering. While all of our technologies demonstrate a commitment to this guiding principle, information is especially important when a society comes together to participate in democratic elections. Beginning ten days from today, more than 700 million eligible voters in India will over the course of four weeks have the opportunity to participate in the largest democratic event in human history — India's 15th general election.
Today, along with a wide range of partners, we are happy to announce the launch of the Google India Elections Centre - available in English and in Hindi. People from across India can use the centre to do the following:
- Confirm their voter registration status
- Discover their polling location
- View their constituency on a map
- Consume relevant election-related news, blogs, videos, and quotations
- Evaluate the status of development in their constituency across a range of indicators
- Learn about the background of their Member of Parliament and this year's candidates
With still more features to be added during the election, we hope the site will be an ongoing resource for analysis, governance, and democracy in India after the election.
This project would not have been possible without the shared vision of a broad coalition of partners: the Association for Democratic Reforms, HT Media Limited, Indicus Analytics, the Janaagraha Centre for Citizenship and Democracy, the Liberty Institute, and PRS Legislative Services. These groups are the true champions of promoting a more transparent democracy, and we're privileged to be able to shine a light on their work on the occasion of India's 15th Lok Sabha polls. We're hopeful not only that the elections centre will further a culture that seeks access to information, but that it will also yield positive changes in voting patterns during the upcoming polls. Please visit the site, select your constituency, and get started! Spread the word about what you learn and, of course, don't forget to visit the polls.
Read the original blog here.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Rich MPs, poor people
Another election season is upon us. It’s a good idea to focus on more basic questions: Do political representatives make any difference, to the state they’re from, or to the castes they represent; how representative are our MLAs/MPs; does only money-power matter? Do representatives from poorer states tend to be relatively wealthier in comparison to their population, than those from richer states? Does being rich ensure electoral success or is it tied to the performance of the party? Using data from Empowering India initiative, Sunil Jain seeks some answers in his column in Business Standard.
Now that election season is upon us, we’ll be bombarded by all manner of analyses, pre-election surveys on voting behaviour, post-election analyses on whether people voted their caste or just cast their vote; and so on. Till then, it’s a good idea to focus on more basic questions: Do political representatives make any difference, to the state they’re from, or to the castes they represent (are OBCs in Bihar any better off after 15 years of Lalu-raj?); indeed, are our MLAs/MPs even representative in the true sense of the term; does only money-power matter?
As for whether our MPs/MLAs are representative of us, the answer is mostly a ‘no’. By and large, the poorer the state, the richer the MP/MLA. One way of rationalising this is to say that political leaders have always belonged to the aristocracy — one look at the education levels of our MPs/MLAs, however, makes it clear this is not the case here. That this should happen, though, is no surprise — the poorer a state, the higher the chances of it being badly governed, and so the greater the scope/need for MPs/MLAs to have the power to dispense favours. Visit the Liberty Institute’s website (http://www.empoweringindia.org/new/home.aspx) if you want a lot more data, to construct and run econometric models especially.
- Maharashtra has amongst the highest per capita incomes in India (if you leave out small states like Delhi) and, on average, its MPs declared assets of around Rs 110 lakh in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections, ranging from Rs 64 lakh for the Shiv Sena to Rs 191 lakh for the Congress Party (Rs 65 lakh for Shiv Sena MLAs to Rs 133 lakh for Congress MLAs). Surprisingly, however, Andhra Pradesh, which has a 30 per cent lower per capita income, has MPs whose average assets are around 4.5 times as high at Rs 490 lakh (TDP MLAs in Andhra had an average asset-base of Rs 190 lakh and the figure was Rs 116 lakh for Congress MLAs); Punjab MPs are the richest (its per capita income is around a tenth lower but its MPs are around six times as wealthy with average assets of Rs 672 lakh).
- Gujarat MPs/MLAs are the paragon of virtue when it comes to their wealth (the state’s per capita is around 8 per cent lower than Maharashtra and its MPs have assets which are around 40 per cent lower). Poorer states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Madhya Pradesh are the real shocker. Bihar’s per capita income is a fifth that of Maharashtra, yet its MPs are just a tenth less wealthy (Rs 101 lakh for Bihar versus Rs 110 lakh for Maharashtra) — Bihar MLAs, however, have assets that average around Rs 20 lakh as compared to three-four times that for Maharashtra MLAs. UP, similarly, has a per capita income that’s a little over a third that of Maharashtra, but its MPs are a third wealthier. Madhya Pradesh has a per capita income that’s 40 per cent that of Maharashtra, but its MPs are just 14 per cent less wealthy.
Read the full story here:
Indefenceofliberty
Business Standard
Lets go out and vote: It will make a difference
I believe, going out and voting for someone, anyone, is much better option, than just saying No. Even if our candidate gets less than 1% of vote, political parties will begin to look at us as a potential support base, and therefore more amenable to listen to us. If our preferred candidate secures 2-3% of the votes, he may be taken seriously, since he might be in a position to make or break the winner. If our preferred candidate secures 5% of the vote, other parties will sit up and take notice, and begin to woo us, and our candidate. And if we put up a candidate whom we believe in, and try to campaign to widen the social-political support base, and secure 10% of the votes, established parties will seriously seek us to join a coalition or an alliance, even when our candidate loses. And if we succeed in expanding further to 15% of the total voters, we will have a realistic chance of seeing our candidate win a multi-cornered contest. The advantages of going out and vote are much more real in today's political context, than we may actually think. With increasingly competitive political conditions, every vote single vote really counts, it will be taken note of by all the political contenders, quite irrespective of whether our own preferred candidate wins or loses.
* percentage of votes mentioned are out of the total registered voters in a constituency. If we assume a 50% turnout, then above numbers will seem to be even more realistic. A 15% of total voters will mean 30% of the votes cast, when the turn out is 50%.
~ Barun Mitra
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