Use of blackmoney, muscle power in polls cause of worry: President Pranab Mukherjee

President Pranab Mukherjee today expressed concern over the “abuse” of money and muscle power in elections, contending these malpractices “subvert” the spirit of democracy.

He also urged the Election Commission to reach out to young voters who do not have access to digital and social media platforms.

“The abuse of money and muscle power to influence voters remains a cause of concern. The spirit of democracy will be subverted if these malpractices are not checked,” Mukherjee said addressing the 6th National Voters’ Day celebrations by the EC here.

The day is celebrated to mark the foundation of the Election Commission on January 25, 1950 and is observed with much fanfare by the poll panel and its associate agencies across the country with an aim to increase voter participation.

The President also lauded the poll body for undertaking “innovative” ways to reach out to the electorate, particularly youth, so they exercise their right to vote in a free and fair manner as soon as they are eligible. He said while social media has raised awareness amongst the youth about the elections process, special attention has to be paid to those who are “outside the ambit of the digital opportunities”.

“It is commendable the way EC has taken up initiatives for informed and ethical voting,” he said, adding India takes pride in being the “largest functional democracy” in the world where more than 84 crore people participate in elections.

Mukherjee said elections in India were not merely a festival of democracy but also a “gigantic administrative exercise”, a task, which the EC and its officials have rendered with “perfect impartiality and fearlessness.”

Mukherjee, while calling himself a former “practising political activist”, said world leaders and thinkers did not appreciate India, with its low literacy, high poverty and backwardness, becoming a Republic.

A personal friend of former Prime Minster Jawaharlal Nehru, he said, wrote to him that “your idealism will be frustrated on ground of reality” but he himself later on admitted that India “graduated with distinction” after the first general elections were held successfully.

He called EC’s new initiatives as “exemplary”, including the innovation of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) as they drastically shortened the time taken for counting of votes and declaring results.

Speaking on the occasion, the President said the NVD signifies a mutual obligation.

“It is indeed the duty of the Election Commission of India to ensure that all eligible voters are included on the rolls. It is an onerous and continuous task. But it is equally the responsibility of citizens to enroll themselves as voters.

“Voter’s participation in the electoral process is integral to the successful running of any democracy. The level of voters’ participation reflects people’s level of confidence and trust in democracy,” he said.

Mukherjee said the constitutional body of EC came into existence on January 25, 1950, just a day before the celebration of the first Republic Day.

“It is a significant metaphor indicating that we received the Indian Republic with the mandate of the people,” he said.

He said Article 326 of the Constitution had fixed the minimum qualifying age of voting at 21 years.

“But, there were persistent demands that the voting age should be lower. Finally, the Constitution (Sixty-First) Amendment Act, lowered the minimum qualifying age to 18 years. In the 10th General Elections to Lok Sabha in November, 1989, an estimated 35.7 million voters between the age group of 18 to 21 years participated and exercised their electoral right.

“And, ahead of the 16th General Elections in 2014, there were 23.16 million voters between the age group 18 to 19 years alone. In fact, they constituted 2.8 percent of the national electorate,” he said.

Mukherjee said he was happy to note that today, the voter education programme of the Commission is spread out across the country with an attempt to reach each and every citizen of the country, keeping in mind that those who are not yet eligible to be electors, are the prospective electors.

On the occasion, the President also received the first copy of the book ‘Belief in the Ballot’.

The book is brought out by the EC based on experiences and accounts of different of voters.