A helping hand to Indian Democracy

I was stunned at first when the call to attend training for election duty as presiding officer for the Assembly elections 2011 in Kerala was received. Not only was this my first experience, but it was also a breach of company’s practice not to send technical staff for outside duty such as this. The message came only a day before the training and we went to Parur municipal town hall on Mar 23 for the program. They had called 200 people for that session and utter confusion prevailed. After filling up some essential requirements, we were photographed and an experienced guy from revenue department presented the various aspects of polling and the activities required to be carried out. The honorarium was also paid out at the end of the program.

Hectic activities were initiated by the company to get some of the essential staff exempted from duty to avoid the need for shutting down plants for shortage of personnel. Some were spared, but some others were put in their places. The talk of the work place for the next one week was the ways to wriggle out of election duty. No easy solution was proposed by anybody. After two weeks, another training program was announced, this time at the Govt Girls HSS, Ernakulam on Apr 5. This time, there was no coordination at all on the part of revenue department, who are the organizers of the electoral process. There were no instructions displayed and what was more glaring than the general confusion was the complete inefficiency of the revenue department of Kerala. As per the manual issued by Election Commission of India, the department was bound to provide assistance for issue of postal ballots to the officers who have to undergo election duty. Not only was this arranged, but the organizers had no idea what to do to obtain postal ballots. The incompetence of these guys were amply observed by all the people present.

The poll was scheduled on Apr 13, 2011. I reported at Maharaja’s College, Ernakulam from where I was posted to Tripunithura constituency. There were three polling officers in my team and when I called the first on his mobile, he seemed surprised to hear me and informed that he won’t be coming because he had convinced the returning officer that he was closely aligned to a political party which goes against the practice of the commission to allow such people to conduct election. A spare guy was posted from the reserve list. We collected polling material including electronic voting and control units. After confirming everything was order, we boarded the bus at 12.30 pm to go to the polling station along with the crew for six other stations. Naturally, the vehicle had to wait for the last team to arrive.

The real shock came when we reached the spot. When we first heard the name of the station, Saraswathivilasam UP School, Nettoor, we hadn’t thought it to be such a dilapidated structure with no sanitary facilities! It had no rooms, only bays with half-walls. Even though it was a school, facilities for toilet and urinals were non-existent. A latrine was there, but was locked. When it was finally opened after much heckling it was immediately closed again, seeing the pathetic state it was in! After several phone calls by outraged officials, facility was provided at nearby homes for primary requirements. After taking lunch at a nearby restaurant, we set up the station. We had to stay the night there because of the voting machines and polling material being kept there. Kochi is notorious for mosquitoes and even though Nettoor is not exactly in the city, as far as mosquitoes were concerned, it was determined not to be second to it. There were occasions when the bunch of mosquitoes seemed to lift us from out makeshift beds. The only consolation was the number of bats which frequently flew into rooms and which seemed to eat some of the insects! Sleep was out of the question.

I woke up at 4am on the polling day and by 5.30, our team was ready. Mock poll (a process to ensure that every button on the machine is working and it is counting votes properly) was done at 6 am in the presence of polling agents of various political parties. By 6.30, we sealed the machine and polling started exactly at 7am as instructed by the authorities. Polling proceeded smoothly, the atmosphere being cordial and friendly. The polling agents, even though they belonged to rival parties had no personal or political enmity between them and helped each other and ourselves. Probably the political workers in Kannur which is notorious for political violence may take a lesson or two from their bretheren at Ernakulam! They also provided with food and drink at regular intervals. There were some hitches from our side to which I needn’t go into detail. Everything was sorted out in the end at 5pm. A total of 75% votes were polled in that station. After-poll formalities were completed and room was properly cleaned with assistance from the polling agents. A word must be said here about the good conduct of the agents of CPM, the Marxists. They were present throughout and helped us a lot. Not that the agents of Congress didn’t cooperate, but they left as soon as the poll was over. CPM’s agents actively helped us during the entire period. This is not because I have any sympathy for that party, as can be evidenced by the other blogs in this series. But a word of thanks is due to them.

The school was in such a poor state with no breathing space, but four stations were set up there. We boarded the bus at 6.30 pm, which left the place one hour later, collecting people from all stations along the route. We reached the collection centre at 8 pm and after handing over materials, were relieved of our duties and started back home at 8.30 pm.

This was my first experience and I hope I wouldn’t have to go in future. But, apart from the requirement of staying in the station for the previous night, the things are not troublesome and can also be enjoyed if you are inclined to do so!

Jasmine revolution in India – Let a hundred flowers bloom!

Popular unrest raged successfully in Tunisia and Egypt for a change in regime some weeks back with the fighting still in full swing in Libya and agitations keeping up momentum in Yemen and Bahrain, while the rest of the world watched the proceedings with bemused interest in the ascendancy of democracy in those countries long accustomed to dictatorship and military rule. The administrators in India sat complacently in the full confidence that the democratic setup in the country would stand the pressure for dislodging the officials and politicians submerged neck-deep in corruption. The administration even defied a Supreme Court ruling to furnish the list of black-money hoarders in front of it, citing diplomatic protocols! The Prime Minister, in his characteristic style kept mum on the harsh language used by the Apex court, probably thinking that the judges would soon get tired of it all!

It all changed on April 5^th, when a veteran social activist from Maharashtra started a fast-unto-death on the model set forth by the father of the nation. Kisan Bapat Baburao Hazare, better known as Anna Hazare is 71 years old, had served in the army as driver, is a noted social activist and reformer and the recipient of Padma Bhushan in 1992 for the social developmental activities initiated by him in Ralegan Siddhi village in Maharashtra. He had bravely fought the politicians of all hues in his crusade against corruption. In 1998, the politicians even successfully brought out a defamation suit against him for unveiling corruption and had him incarcerated in jail, making a mockery of democracy in India. Widespread popular agitation forced the government to release him soon. In 2003, he started a similar fast unto death demanding probe into the graft charges levelled against four ministers of the NCP-Congress government ruling the state. He called off the fast only after the government caved in to his demand. The resulting inquiry commission indicted three of them who subsequently quit the cabinet.

The latest salvo by the veteran activist is for introducing a Jan Lokpal (People’s ombudsman) bill in the Parliament with more teeth for the ombudsman unlike the position offered in the Lokpal bill now under consideration of the Parliament. The bill, in its present form, presents an impotent, laughable official as the Lokpal (ombudsman) who would have no powers to initiate suo motu action against complaints from the public, will only be an advisory body, will not have any police powers, not at all connected to CBI and the maximum penalty for corruption being imprisonment for 6 months, which can go up to 6 years in deserving cases. Anna Hazare would have none of this and he is demanding stronger legislation to prove the determination of the government to root out corruption. The people’s ombudsman (Jan Lokpal) bill drafted by him envisage police powers for the ombudsman who would have authority to initiate suo motu action, can register FIRs, intimately linked to the anti-corruption wing of the CBI, with the punishment ranging from a minimum of 6 years which could go up to life term! The government tried to soften him with promises of some minor modifications in the existing bill, that too, in the monsoon session of parliament. Hazare rejected all such overtures and bravely went ahead with the fast.

Hazare’s movement has aroused popular interest in all corners of the country. Irrespective of their denominations, citizens have come out in the open to declare support for the 71-year old leader who reminds them of Mahatma Gandhi. His refusal to allow politicians to share the dais with him has tremendously appealed to the imagination of the people who are really tired of the blatant corruption the country has plunged into. Hazare’s assertion that corruption is the greatest threat India is facing and not Pakistan has sunk deep into the popular mindset. Let’s sincerely hope that this movement would become India’s Jasmine revolution and expect some solid action being taken by the unwilling government whose hands will be forced. Good luck to Anna Hazare.