Ramdev: A political force for the good?
Amidst the hustle and bustle of a town dotted with temples and brightened up by saffron-clad “sadhus” or holy men, was a pandal with a thousand people waiting for Baba Ramdev’s daily yoga preaching.
At least 30 million were waiting to start their day with his discourse, through live telecast on an Indian spiritual channel.
Holy man Ramdev, known for popularising Yoga and traditional ayurvedic treatment and also for practising the ancient technique of breathing exercises called Pranayam has been beset by controversies for the last few years.
His recent decision to enter politics and “cleanse the system” has also created quite a furore.
Many political leaders have made their disapproval public including Lalu Prasad Yadav, leader of Rashtriya Janata Dal party calling his decision to join politics “berserk”.
Even though Ramdev has made it very clear he does not want to be an office holder or a Member of Parliament, he says he still aims at a 100 percent win in the next Lok Sabha elections.
Contesting elections from 543 Lok Sabha constituencies will be a part of his recent movement called ‘Bharat Swabhiman’ or Indian pride which aims to eradicate corruption and deal with other social issues like poverty and education.
How to get more women into parliament?
As part of its 100-day action plan, the Congress-led UPA government is pushing for the Women’s Reservation Bill, which seeks to reserve 33 per cent seats in parliament for women.
The UPA has also promised to give women 50 percent seats in local government institutions like the village council, up from the 33 percent of seats currently reserved for them.
That measure has been in place for over a decade and a half. But has it done any good?
Initially, it was feared that elected women would be no more than “dumb dolls”, manipulated into endorsing decisions taken by their husbands and other family members.
But a government-sponsored study in 2008 of elected women representatives in village councils has shown encouraging results.
“A sizeable proportion of women representatives perceive enhancement in their self-esteem (79%), confidence (81%) and decision-making ability (74%),” says the study.
There has been hue and cry about women reservation bill and some modifications in it for a long time now but i think that such a law itself should not exist. A person (in this case a Man) who has worked for his constituency throughout life will suddenly find that he is not allowed to contest election from that constituency because it is reserved for women. This is really ridiculous in democracy and is definitely biased against men. Shortcuts are not always good. If women want to come to parliament then they should fight in a democratic way with men. This will give them more respect. NCW and other women organizations are misusing the enormous power being bestowed to them and even the media now are acting irresponsibly. When the OBC quota was introduced the media was responsible enough to show both sides of it. But now even they are biased and are blaming politicians in delaying the passage of the bill. This is a sad situation wherein talent and people’s will are given a second seat. The advocacy of such a law shows immaturity and lack of responsibility on the part of its supporters. I hope such a law should not be passed so that any capable PERSON can contest election from the constituency of his/her choice.
Should the Prime Minister be a member of the Lok Sabha?
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is not contesting elections to the Lok Sabha, the lower and popular house of parliament.This is for reasons of health and also because the constitution permits the prime minister to be a member of either of the two houses of parliament.Like Singh, we have had prime ministers from the Rajya Sabha earlier but they sought to get elected to the lower house and succeeded easily.As the de facto head of the government, the prime minister is expected to earn people’s approval directly.Mayawati recently took a dig at Singh over the issue.”This Manmohan Singh has not contested any public election…he was brought back door in Rajya Sabha and made prime minister,” the Bahujan Samaj Party chief said at an election rally.”If Manmohan can become PM, why can’t an educated Dalit woman.”This is possibly the first instance in Indian politics where the sitting prime minister has decided to stay away from the race.But should India’s prime minister be a member of the Lok Sabha?The opposition, after initially trying to make it a poll issue, now seems to have lost the plot.The question keeps popping up on internet discussion boards.FOR– Those who support the idea of a prime minister from the lower house say that a popular vote marks acceptability by the people as compared to someone nominated to the Rajya Sabha.– Such a person having earned the people’s mandate is seen as less susceptible to manipulation.– A person’s performance as an MP is seen as a necessary test of his competence and claim to the top job.– Some even suggest that a prime ministerial candidate should seek election with a pre-announced team, something like the shadow cabinet system in Britain.AGAINST– The most convincing argument against the idea is that the constitution puts no such caveat.– The upper house is seen as a talent pool where competent candidates are sent after consideration. This compensates for impulsive behavior of voters which can sometimes make “good” candidates unelectable. For example, Manmohan Singh lost the 1999 Lok Sabha election from the posh South Delhi constituency.– It is also felt that any prime minister would work according to the party’s ideology, membership of a house being irrelevant to his policies and performance.– Moreover, the prime minister is in any case indirectly elected (by the party MPs), so the argument of his having greater acceptance may not cut much ice.– Some feel that if the person is a representative of the majority party and competent then nothing else should count. Others say the proposal calls into question the very rationale of having an upper house, and therefore, needs to be fleshed out.One comment on the online forum points to the question being a moral rather than a legal one.There are two facts to bear in mind.In the Westminster system of democracy, a prime minister from the upper house would be an anachronism.Secondly, the constitution review commission recognised the lower house’s pre-eminence in its recommendation that the prime minister be directly elected by the house in the event of a hung poll verdict.As for the practical aspect, the Congress is contesting around 400 seats in these elections, and finding a safe seat for a politician like Manmohan Singh, the sitting prime minister, should have been easy.In March, opposition leader L.K. Advani raised the issue at an election rally.”Singh will be more acceptable to the people of India if he decides to fight the elections and go to the Lok Sabha,” he said.Did Advani have a valid point?
In a democracy based on one person one vote anyone including Mayavati can rise to become prime minister of the country. However, the requirements are – demonstrate leadership and competence, and earn the trust of the people.
The no-vote option: Will Indians ever exercise it?
Democracy is all about choice and there have been calls to introduce a “none of the above” option in electronic voting machines so that guardians of the election process in the world’s largest democracy can reject candidates who don’t pass muster.
And if this is likely to get sucked into political wrangling – the fate of most pertinent issues in India – some say the Election Commission (EC), political activists and those urging the “sleeping population to wake up and vote” should advertise the virtues of Rule 49-O of the Conduct of Elections Rules, which allows you to register your disapproval.
A peek into the election rulebook reveals the following about 49-O: “Elector deciding not to vote – If an elector, after his electoral roll number has been duly entered in the register of voters in Form-17A and has put his signature or thumb impression thereon as required under sub-rule (1) of rule 49L, decided not to record his vote, a remark to this effect shall be made against the said entry in Form 17A by the presiding officer and the signature or thumb impression of the elector shall be obtained against such remark.”
The issue is the subject of debate on several websites and blogs.
Another website is running a signature campaign urging people to vote in favour of a “no vote” option.
Reports say the EC is in favour of such a provision, but is not empowered to implement it. The authority lies with the Centre which must amend the Representation of the People Act for the change to be incorporated.
The country began voting in the first stage of a staggered general election on Thursday. The outcome of the month-long five-stage poll, which will see hundreds of candidates in the fray for 543 Lok Sabha seats, will be known on May 16.
this is seriously needed 2 b done.n these votes should be counted as valid ones….
Does youth trump experience in the Lok Sabha stakes?
Indian political parties and leaders are courting young voters for the upcoming general elections and the age of political leaders like L.K. Advani and Rahul Gandhi is being made into an electoral issue.
After all nearly two-thirds of India is below 35 years of age, the cut-off for ‘youth’ according to the National Youth Policy.
A number of surveys and studies seem to suggest otherwise.
One nation-wide survey reported in the ‘Mint’ newspaper shows voters may not quite prefer “fresh and young” candidates, with two-thirds of the 17,640 people sampled preferring experienced candidates.
A series of post-poll surveys carried out since 1996 by the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies shows voter turnout is highest in the age group 46-55. The turnout in the age group 18-25 has been consistently lower.
However, a study by the Imagindia institute says parties that put up candidates in the age group 30-45 have an advantage. This is based on what the institute calls ‘Age-Voter pulse model’. It assumes that the ability of a candidate to connect with the pulse of voters depends upon the age difference with the electorate.
i totally agree that being a young candidate doesn’t necessarily translate into votes, for other factors such as experience also count, and in a vast and a socially varied country like India, where fruits of development have still not reached a vast majority, many still prefer to vote for familiar faces, for multitude of reasons such as caste or religion, but very rarely development..however i disagree that these leaders get votes because they perform better in parliament. It is also a fact that it is the inapt handling by these legislators, which has left country’s economic, social and political fabric in tatters.
Are frequent elections a waste of time and money?
The general elections in India, due shortly, may not throw up a clear winner.
This could mean weeks or even months of political uncertainty as parties negotiate for power.
Of the past six prime ministers, only three could complete their term.
In this context, the idea for a fixed term for parliament or the government may be floated again.
Indeed, the Chief Election Commissioner recently suggested a fixed term of five years for the government to cope with the increased frequency of elections, which hinders governance.
One reason for such suggestions is that frequent elections are seen as wasteful.
A candidate in a large state is allowed to spend around 2.5 million rupees (US $50,000) to contest for the lower house of parliament in a large state.
Wow it’s nice to see there is no one with the general pessimistic thought. Oh elections, netas, corruption!!!
We are a democracy, slow to work or no, expensive to stay so or no, we must remain a democracy.
@Narayan
I am not sure what was the point of your article. It was rather well written till I came to the last paragraph where presumably lies the heart of the matter. What I fail to understand is that how would a set of stretching exercises transform primary education even if it has the capacity to spread almost like a virus. Wouldn’t the knowledge of basic critical thinking imparted to the students at that early age by their teachers, be more effective? And to be clear India produces 3 times as much scientists than US per year. So critical thinking is not associated to western ideology. It is the best system we have till now to gain knowledge and understanding about the world around us. It would be good if Indian academicians stop supporting frauds and shaman if they really want to popularize science.