D Raja writes: In this election season, the BJP has attacked the integrity of the electoral process

The Election Commission of India (ECI) was designed to be a strong, independent and permanent body, with its authority derived directly from the Constitution. The ECI has wide powers and authority when it comes to conducting free and fair elections. The ECI’s power goes to such an extent that in 2017 it cancelled a by-election for RK Nagar constituency in Tamil Nadu when it felt that the electoral process was being “seriously compromised” by the use of money power. It is disheartening to see the same body behaving and ignoring serious violations of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) by leaders of the BJP. The BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi started their election campaign by repeatedly raising the Ram Temple issue, but the ECI took no notice. However, much to the BJP’s shock, people gave priority to livelihood issues like employment, price rise and the BJP’s decade of mismanagement, etc. Their refusal to be swayed by the Ram Temple issue left the BJP and Modi desperate and resorted to the only thing they know how to do – polarisation. Overnight, the BJP dropped Modi’s guarantees and Viksit Bharat rhetoric and started stoking hatred and division. The Prime Minister openly spoke against minorities and baselessly claimed that the opposition alliance would bring wealth to Muslims if voted to power. These statements not only violated the MCC but also the spirit of secularism and equality enshrined in the Constitution.

I wrote to the CEC on April 23 demanding action against Modi and the BJP for violating the MCC. In response, the ECI issued a notice – not to Modi, who had made the provocative remarks, but to BJP leader JP Nadda, asking him to “advise all your star campaigners to set high standards in political discourse and to comply with the provisions of the MCC in letter and spirit”. In the past, such notices and reprimands were addressed directly to the campaigner who had violated the MCC. In addition, the ECI issued a similar notice to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.

The mandate of the people goes beyond a change of government – it is vital to protect the character of our nation, built by the sacrifices of our freedom fighters. Ideals like equality, secularism, welfare, federalism and social justice are essential to progress. The independence and integrity of key institutions are required if the interests of citizens are to be protected. Free and fair elections are the cornerstone of our democracy and the ECI is the instrument to ensure this constitutional right. Given the institutional erosion we are witnessing all around us, the ECI should serve the people as per its mandate.

The author is General Secretary of the CPI