… And lessons for Lanka
In the midst of the ‘noise and chaos’ of electioneering in a democracy like India, there seems to be some sanity prevailing. At least there is in place, a Model Code of Conduct (MCC) that provides some guidelines that keep the campaigns within its tracks.The MCC is implemented by the independent Elections Commission (EC), and though it has lost its once powerful image under the former Commissioner T. N. Seshan when it not only implemented the guidelines but was seen to implement them, its edicts are taken seriously by competing parties even today.
Last week, the EC transferred the Chief Secretary of Andhra Pradesh, much to the chagrin of the Chief Minister. Senior police officers in another state who were doing the bidding of the ruling party politicians rather than their duty to the nation were sent to another state. The police have been given the greenlight to search vehicles that transport bundles of cash meant to buy up voters, and many have been remanded for their inability to explain the source of these funds.
On Wednesday, EC banned the release of Modi’s biopic, saying the film had the potential to “disturb level playing field during elections”. The BJP Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh was cautioned by the EC when he referred to the Indian Armed Forces as ‘Modi’s Sena’ or Modi’s Army, and the Prime Minister’s own address on ‘Mission Shakti’, (Mission Strength) an Indian satellite that was launched deftly named after a BJP poverty alleviation programme, was subject to scrutiny by the EC.
The EC’s writ extends to SMC voice-messages on phone during campaigning, the broadcast of which needs pre-certification from the concerned authority – the Media Certification and Monitoring Committee. The EC has looked into the funding of private television stations, one of which is believed to be a BJP funded outfit.
The controversial social media giant Facebook already under fire worldwide as an unregulated ‘Knight of Slander’ and user data breach, recently removed 687 pages and accounts linked to individuals in an IT cell of the Congress Party as it tries to crack down on false accounts and ‘inauthentic behaviour’. It is also keeping a close watch on political ads on its platforms and adding more teams to flag fake news, as the Indian Government itself is concerned that social media platforms may be used by external elements to influence the country’s elections through undesirable means.
Despite all these checks and balances, the Indian political and electioneering juggernaut continues to roll. All parties have a bagful of goodies on offer – both by way of promises in their election manifesto, and in their secret accounts of undeclared funds. In Tamil Nadu, voters have been showered with washing machines, cookers and TV sets – even gold. Party workers are given local brews and lunch at a Dharba before they go to mass rallies. There is no way an EC can stop all of this which is part and parcel of elections in this part of the world.
With this being in all likelihood an election year in Sri Lanka, there may well be lessons to be learnt from the world’s biggest democracy. Firstly, a look at the MCC of the Indian EC to see that a free and fair election that reflects the will of the majority is eventually delivered. Sri Lanka is among the oldest of the modern democracies in the world, and its elections have only recently come into question with computer gilmarts and an Elections Commissioner going missing for some hours during the counting. With old tricks and new treats up the sleeves of contending parties, and undeclared funds raining down at election time, Sri Lanka’s proud history of elections will be tested to the core come its turn.