Published in English Weekly, Friday Times.
India is the largest democracy in the world and the
ongoing elections are going to be the world’s largest.
Some 814 million Indians, more than the entire
population of Europe, will cast their votes to elect the 16th Lok Sabha in
India. There are a total of 543 parliamentary constituencies in India, and the
winning party or coalition needs 272 seats to form the next government. The
voting process has been divided into 9 phases that began on April 7 and will
conclude on May 12.
This voting will take place across the length and
breadth of the country, from the deserts of Rajhisthan to the tiny islands in
the Indian Ocean. The Election Commission of India has assured that no person
needs to travel more than 2 kilometers to cast his vote. In 2009, a polling
booth was created in Western Gujarat so that one single voter could cast his
vote.
Regardless of the outcome, this would not merely be
an exercise of choosing a new government in New Delhi, but the results of the
Indian elections will have an impact on the world at large and the region in
particular.
Unfortunately, since the inception of Pakistan, our
experience with democracy has not been pleasant, and we have remained unable to
develop a potent political culture. We need to observe keenly the experience of
India and the present developments and learn from our arch-rival.
Fortunately, we already are on right track since
2007. A good number of steps that we can take pride in – including the purging
of dictatorial tempering in the constitution, increased provincial autonomy
through the 18th amendment, development of a consensus on 7th NFC awards,
formulation of an independent election commission, and a peaceful transition of
power – have proved instrumental in fostering democracy, revitalizing the
parliamentary system, and strengthening national institutions.
However, a lot still needs to be done to establish a
democratic culture.
Towards this end, devolution of power to the
grassroots level through local election can go a long way in nurturing
democratic culture and establishing better governance.
We should wish India a peaceful election and should
learn from their experience.
TASSAWUR BOSAL
Mandi Bahauddin
Weekly Friday Times.
