Pursuit for poll reforms will continue: Chief election commissioner Nasim Zaidi | Latest News India - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

Pursuit for poll reforms will continue: Chief election commissioner Nasim Zaidi

Mar 05, 2017 02:14 PM IST

The government had recently rejected the Commission’s demands for ‘totaliser’ machines to deny political parties access to booth level voting patterns, and for powers to countermand polls in case of voter bribery.

The Election Commission will be unrelenting in its pursuit of electoral reforms despite the Centre’s rejection of its two key demands, the poll panel’s chief Nasim Zaidi has said.

Chief election commissioner Nasim Zaidi, along with election commissioners Achal Kumar Jyoti and Om Prakash Rawat in New Delhi.(PTI FILE PHOTO)
Chief election commissioner Nasim Zaidi, along with election commissioners Achal Kumar Jyoti and Om Prakash Rawat in New Delhi.(PTI FILE PHOTO)

The government had recently rejected the Commission’s demands for ‘totaliser’ machines to deny political parties access to booth level voting patterns, and for powers to countermand polls in case of voter bribery.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

“We are pursuing this. It’s not a question of seeking more powers but ensuring more fairness in elections. We have only two elements—free and fair elections,” chief election commissioner (CEC) Nasim Zaidi said in an interview to HT.

On the countermanding of polls, he said the government’s reason for disagreeing is that bribery is a matter of investigation.

“We say, so is booth capturing. We say we countermand elections for booth capturing only on the basis of the report of the returning officers and observers. Similarly, we will also countermand elections for bribing voters if we have the reports and reliable evidence,” Zaidi said.

The chief election commissioner has also ruffled feathers by taking on political bigwigs, issuing notices for model code violations to defence minister Manohar Parrikar and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal during the ongoing assembly elections.

Under attack from the political class, Zaidi reiterated his demand for collegium system for the appointment of CEC and other election commissioners.

“If all political parties are not on board in the selection of election commissioners…there will always be an issue. There might be concerns that ‘A’ has been appointed by a particular party, etc.

“If the opposition is also taken into confidence in the selection of election commissioners, nobody can say that the party does not have faith in A, B or C,” he said.

Zaidi however said that the present system has worked well and that all the “CECs appointed earlier worked according to legal and constitutional provisions in a neutral way”.

The EC has a long list of recommendations awaiting the Centre’s nod. These include steps to increase transparency in political funding, making bribery a cognisable offence and disallowing candidates accused of heinous crimes, against whom charges have been framed, from contesting elections.

Incidentally, the government had not taken the EC into confidence before announcing the introduction of electoral bonds. The CEC refused to comment on this, saying he was yet to hear from the government on this issue.

Another electoral reform being pushed by the EC is to get candidates to disclose the source of their income that they mention in their affidavits. The suggestion has been turned down by political parties who want only candidates’ assets and liabilities in the public domain.

The political class is also resisting the attempt to introduce totalisers that can hide voting patterns.

Pushing for a totaliser machine, Zaidi said, “At the booth level, voting pattern is known and it is used to intimidate people… What we want is: our technology will mix data from 16 machines (so as not to reveal voting pattern).”

To the government’s stance that the technology will cause inconvenience to political parties for booth management, he said, “…Protection of our voters, secrecy of our votes must receive precedence over convenience.”

Unveiling Elections 2024: The Big Picture', a fresh segment in HT's talk show 'The Interview with Kumkum Chadha', where leaders across the political spectrum discuss the upcoming general elections. Watch now!

Get Current Updates on India News, Election 2024, Mukhtar Ansari Death News Live, Bihar Board 10th Result 2024 Live along with Latest News and Top Headlines from India and around the world.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    author-default-90x90

    Smriti covers an intersection of politics and governance. Having spent over a decade in journalism, she combines old fashioned leg work with modern story telling tools.

SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Friday, March 29, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On