New Delhi: Discussions have begun regarding the timing of the upcoming Bihar assembly elections after the Election Commission postponed by-elections for one Lok Sabha and seven assembly seats in some states due to coronavirus epidemic and floods. Few questions from former Chief Election Commissioner SY Qureshi on the same topic:
Question: In the states of Corona virus crisis bye elections have been postponed, so can the upcoming assembly elections, especially Bihar elections be postponed?
Answer: There is a difference between a by-election and a general election. Assembly elections and Lok Sabha elections are mandatory to be held within the given time limit as it is a constitutional requirement. Elections are to be held in Bihar by 27 November. If a few seats remain vacant, then there is no constitutional crisis by postponing elections there. In such a situation, Bihar election cannot be avoided.
Question: Most of the opposition parties in Bihar are in favor of postponing the election, what is your opinion on this?
Answer: I am surprised that the opposition is saying that postpone the election. The opposition’s statement should be the opposite. The effort of the opposition is to have elections soon and he wins and comes to power. It is true that the situation due to corona virus is serious. But I do not think the election will have to be postponed. It is constitutionally mandatory to hold elections by 27 November.
Question: Is there any constitutional option before the Election Commission in the context of postponing Bihar elections for a few months?
Answer: Under the Constitution, there can be only one reason to postpone the election after the deadline which is an emergency. This emergency can occur for two reasons. One reason is foreign aggression and the other is the state of domestic revolt. There is no such situation at the moment. The crisis of Kovid-19 does not fall within this definition of emergency. By the way, Kovid-19 is not just in India. It is worldwide. Elections have been held in 33 countries in the last four months. There is feedback from everywhere that elections were done well, there was no problem. In Poland and South Korea, the vote percentage was very high. If Poland and South Korea can conduct elections then why can’t India? India is a world teacher in the conduct of elections.
Question: How practical would it be to vote in the Corona virus crisis and complete dependence on digital elections?
Answer: See, it is everyone’s responsibility to follow the law of social distance. If you go to the market, there are rules for it, if you go to the temple-mosque, there are rules for it. Elections are one day activity, markets are open everyday. Handling market congestion is more difficult, but conducting elections is no more difficult. The Election Commission has said that we will increase the number of booths so that there is no crowd. Schools are closed these days and many other departments are not opening. Therefore, there will be no problem in meeting the requirement of large number of employees for the election. Online election campaign has been going on for the last 10 years. The 2014 election was fought in a digital way. It is also true that online campaigning cannot completely replace campaigning at the ground level. In such a case, there should be a mixture of both. A limited number of vehicle processions and ‘door to door’ publicity can be allowed following social distance.
Question: How do you see the Commission’s decision to facilitate voting by post letters for people over 65 years of age at the time of the Coronavirus crisis and then not implement it?
Answer: Technically, the decision of the Election Commission was correct. There is also advice from the government that people above 65 years should not leave. The Election Commission implements the laws of the country. In that context, there was no flaw in the postal ballot order. But political parties pointed out some problems. Later, the Commission felt that there are lakhs of voters above 65 years of age and so much postal ballot will not be managed.
