The Festival of Democracy in India: Pranoy Roy and Navin Chawla

A look at the world of politics, statecraft, diplomacy and books

India is the world's largest Democracy and in spite of the antics of political parties like the Congress,, DMK, the Communist factions and identity based political groups like the Akali and the Muslim League. And that is not a mean achievement in itself. Navin Chawla, the well known biographer of Mother Theresa, has said in as many words that the Election Commission of India is the real pillar of Indian democracy. He may not be off the mark as the Election Commission is universally feared by political parties across the political spectrum. Its ability to enforce a modicum of discipline in the conduct of elections shows that what it lacks by means of man power it makes up with robust moral authority by establishing its absolute independence from the Executive. The book Every Vote Counts: The Story of India's Elections is a racy highly readable gallop across all General Elections starting from 1952. He documents in rich details the trials and tribulations faced by the Election Commission in the early years under Sukumar Sen. The Election Commission has insisted on a set of practices in order to make the election process free and fair and the Model Code of Conduct in one such measure. There has been frequent allegations that the EVMs ( Electronic Voting Machines) are susceptible to hacking. This is an absurd allegation and given the fact that our political parties are filled with semi  literates such baseless allegations keep gaining traction come every election season. A stand alone machine manufactured to the specifications of the ECI by Bharath Electronic Corporation cannot be hacked as they are not connected to the internet and they are not compatible with blue tooth technology.

The Verdict: Decoding India's Election by the well known election analysts, Dr Pranoy Roy and Darob Sopariwala is a good introduction to the delicate business of election forecasting. They have done a commendable job of looking at the aggregate data relating to General Elections. Does Incumbency provide an advantage to the sitting MP. Do voters vote for political parties or on the basis of their perception of the merit of the candidates contesting. Do political parties decide on candidates on the basis of the winnability or other factors. Does party and its ideology play a major role in determining the outcome. What is the SWING factor and how can it be measured. How do votes get translated into seats. What are the major advantages and disadvantages of the first past the winning post system that we have. A major disappointment in the book is that it does not address the important issue of proportional representation. How does turn out on election day help or hinder the outcome. All these issues are discussed in great detail with a plethora of facts, tables and analyses.

Both these books must be read by everyone interested in Indian politics, particularly the Election process. Navin Chawla raised a very important point in his book and that needs to be further researched. There is no reference to political parties in the Constitution of India. In legal terms a political party has the status of an unincorporated Association. What kind of  democracy was envisaged by the founders and if we remember that Gandhi wanted the Congress to be dissolved, it is certain that the founders had a partyless democracy in mind. We have move a long way from that ideal.

Both these books are worth a read. Lucidly written and with a faint touch of humour I commend these writers for their worthwhile contributions.