dir="ltr">A glaring feature of this election is the large number of politicians switching party loyalties before the polls. In states where Assembly elections are held simultaneously, these pre-election defections are even more glaring. The ninety-seventh amendment to the Constitution, which became law only a few weeks ago, disqualifies all elected legislators who violate party whip irrespective of the size of the defecting faction. The earlier provision recognizing a ‘split’ if a third of the members defect has been repealed. But no law can prevent the pre-election defection.

dir="ltr">With the political temperature rising in the country, the recent DP Yadav episode once again focused attention on criminalization of politics.  Why do parties admit and nominate criminals as candidates? Clearly, they perceive that the winning chances are enhanced by nominating them. The parties have not taken a vow to destroy India. They are only prepared to do whatever it takes to win the elections and once victorious, to retain power.

dir="ltr">One of the important features of Indian polity since 1996 is the rise of coalition culture at the union level. After decades of single-party dominance, we are now getting used to coalition governments. Happily, coalition governments have proved to be stable and conducive to economic growth. This experience forced Congress to forge pre-electoral alliances just as BJP did in 1998. Clearly, in the foreseeable future we will have coalition governments at the national level. This is a welcome development, as only a coalition will reflect India’s diversity.

dir="ltr">With elections over in the four Hindi-speaking states, curtains have been drawn on one great media entertainment for the time being. The media have always treated our elections as a great game. The use of the expression “semifinal” is symbolic. But one thing is certain. There is no ‘semifinal’ or ‘final’ in a democracy. This is a continuing saga which will never attain finality, and history will never end.

dir="ltr">This week, following the Election Commission’s recommendation, the Union government enhanced the election expenditure limits of candidates. For major states, the ceiling for  Assembly now is Rs. 10 lakhs (Rs. 6 lakh earlier), and for Lok Sabha it is  Rs. 25 lakhs (Rs. 15 lakh earlier). This revision became necessary with the recent change of law which plugged the loophole by including party expenditure in ceiling limits. Electioneering costs money, and the new legislation created tax incentive for legitimate funding for political activity.

dir="ltr">The arrest of Amarmani Tripathi, a former minister in UP, on charges of murdering Madhumita Shukla, and the unabashed defense of the accused by chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav exposed the crisis confronting our criminal justice system as never before. The behaviour of two successive governments led by bitter rivals – Mayavati and Mulayam Yadav – is identical in a criminal case involving their political colleague. Tripathi switched loyalties and joined the BSP faction which defected to Mulayam’s side.

dir="ltr">The recent bomb blasts in Mumbai, and the death and devastation that followed brought home to us once again the

Predicting election results has become a fascinatingly hazardous business for many.  The latest elections yielded outcomes that none of the opinion polls, exit polls or even the internal party polls had predicted.  Especially the results for the Lok Sabha.  At the end of all this drama and hungama, there are two very interesting and significant points that we should keep in mind.

In a couple of months time, we will witness the launch of the largest sports competition in history:  Summer Olympics 2004.   Within a couple of days, India, herself, will launch the largest electoral competition in human history.  They are the General Elections 2004.

On April 8, the Rajya Sabha approved the Bill which seeks to remove the residential requirement for election to the Upper House from a state, and provides for open ballot, so that party leaderships can ensure election of their nominee. Predictably, this legislation (Representation of the People (Amendment) Bill, 2001) has raised several questions about representation and attracting talent into legislatures.