The recent polls in 6 states of India, also called semifinals, as they are only a few months before the general elections have been marked by two noticeable things. One is tighter control by EC on expenses and other activities of the candidates. The second is more than expected in party fighting within the major political parties.
The result of the tighter control by EC is that the candidates will have to make more sensible efforts to woo the voters. They cannot just distribute goodies to poor people or send hordes of workers creating noise and traffic jams. The common mans life is running normally.
The result of the second is that fringe parties have high hopes of bagging a seat. Also, as more and more members from within the party want to expose the weakness of their rival, more revelations are being made of the wrong doing by party members. This is a headache for the bosses sitting in Delhi and state capitals. In a certain way is good for the people but is still far from what democracy can achieve in India. The only way to resolve this is by election of candidates, rather than selection. The political parties should hold an internal election for those who desire to be candidates from a constituency.
For sake of convenience, lets call them ‘Party elections’. In these elections, only the registered party workers from that area should be allowed to vote. Each vote shall have the same weightage and party office bearers should be the same as the party worker. During the campaign for ‘party elections’, candidates shall give reasons to the party workers as to why they are best fit to contest the elections and why their possibility of winning it for the party is high.
Although this suggestion can be scoffed at, saying that it is impractical given the existing vested interest and system created to serve that interest, there are ample reasons why this is the only solution. Here are few compelling reason.
Parties realize that they cannot win an election with infighting and without the support of party workers. The regular membership of the parties is decreasing by the day as most get disenchanted when they feel that they are not being heard. The ‘party election’, will allow everyone to be heard. Whosoever wins the party election, the party will support him/her.
Then there is feeling of unfairness in the party workers when it comes to selection of candidates. So much so that senior leaders like Margret Alva and Rahul Gandhi have acknowledged that money, power and closeness to ruling families are the criteria to get the party nominations. This feeling is in all political parties. If there is election, there will be no such allegations.
When there is dissatisfaction, some leaders leave the parties just before the election to join rival parties, in the hope that they will get a bigger role in those parties. This costs the big parties a loss of face and votes. If there is a ‘party election’, and some leaders loose it, then they will have little reason to leave the party and go to rival. As they will know their true worth and so will everybody.
As the new educated voters emerge and want to participate in the political process, they will demand themselves to be heard. No party can attract them without giving them a decent method to express their opinion. They cannot hustle and justle with the crowd and will leave the affairs to less educated. They want politics to be a arena of ideas and views not of physical strength and money strength. If any party wants to attract these young and educated people, they would do well to initiate internal elections. Only then can it hope to attract the new generation.
Hence these are compelling reason why it is important for the mainstream parties to implement ‘party elections’. It is not just upto the bosses in Delhi or state capitals but its time the party workers start demanding ‘party elections’ to brighten their prospects and that of the country.
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