‘Colourful' is a word much associated with elections in India. The Election Commission of India has just reinforced that association, and also given new meaning to that phrase ‘pink elephants' — no longer is it an allusion only to alcohol-induced visions, or the fantasy land of ‘Dear Jessie' in the Madonna song. But seriously, can there be the slightest doubt that the EC's order to cover up all statues of Chief Minister Mayawati and those of the elephant, her Bahujan Samaj Party's election symbol, in election-bound Uttar Pradesh with the politically neutral pink-coloured cloth or plastic sheets falls in the OTT category? The order is supposed to “ensure that these statues do not influence the minds of the electors, disturbing the level playing field” during the election. What the cover-up has done is to ensure much more attention to the OTT statues than they would have received otherwise. There are other misgivings. The EC's order goes back to a 2009 petition asking it to freeze the BSP's election symbol on the ground that the statues, being put up at the time at public spaces using public funds, would jeopardise free and fair elections. Disposing of that petition in 2010, the Commission — whose mandate to enforce the model code of conduct does not kick in until the election schedule is announced — promised to take “appropriate steps” at election time to ensure that the statues would not give the BSP an “unfair advantage” over other parties. For the 2004 general election, it had ordered the covering up of hoardings of Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on national highways refurbished by the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government. The January 8 order is even more bizarre.
Let us consider the argument that the decision to erect permanent stone images of the BSP's symbol using public funds was a deliberate and pre-planned act by Chief Minister Mayawati, and hence needs to be neutralised. The problem is that there are no legal grounds to stop the BSP, or any other party, from erecting in non-election season its symbols or statues of its leaders all over the country. Especially in States that have produced charismatic mass leaders, there are countless statues of icons that the fortunate parties, whether in government or in the opposition, can play up during election season. Not that there is any persuasive evidence that this makes a real difference to poll outcomes. Petitions against the Mayawati government questioning the use of public funds for self-serving partisan ends are pending before the Allahabad High Court and the Supreme Court of India. What the Election Commission must learn to do is understand the limits of its power, even in election season, keep off the grass, and leave the matter to the people's court.
As a common citizen of present India, I get more influenced by many schemes, airports, hospitals, bridges, zoos etc named after some Gandhis. I remember one incident, not too long ago, when a guy fell of some "Gandhi" bridge into a "Gandhi" canal/river/road and hospitalized in thereafter in a "Gandhi" hospital where he died unfortunately.
Its difficult for someone not to come across Gandhi in his/her daily life on daily basis. EC should also change the names of all these entities named after Gandhis. But it will create havoc to change them for a brief period of time and also perhaps an ineffective in De-influencing the electorates. Therefore, EC should have powers all through the years. Its too bizarre to have unlimited powers for a short time to undo the influence imposed over mind of citizens. These influences and impressions are created by crooked politicians. Mayawati has tried to counter the effect of Gandhis, nothing else.
Election commission should understand that covering up the statues is not going to make any diffrences in the poll .They should ensure that election is free and fair.They should ensure that no party voliate the code of conduct.Statues are ubiquitous they cannot cover all the statues Instead it should put its effort in monitoring the politicans during the elections.They should make people aware of the election rules. If someone is misappropriating the public funds then court should look into it and ensure that public funds do not get wasted on trivial things.Covering the statue is outside the election comission purview.
Today's voters are mature enough to take decision in their interest.so making or covering these statues does not make any impact.But what is more important than all these is not allowing the erecting of them in the first place using taxpayer's money which could otherwise be spent in feeding the poor.
EC decision is hilarious..This is their right to showcase their strength and let people see the statues of their great leaders which wont affect the outcome of the elections anyway.
Covering the statues is not the solution. Government should make a proper law on to control the public fund for personal use.
Dear sir, I am a bit confused here. You have found fault with the CEC for ordering the covering all 'elephantine' statues in UP for apparent fear that it may influence the voter. It is any body's guess now whether it will adversely or otherwise help the Congress. The editorial closes with a "What the Election Commission must learn to do is understand the limits of its power, even in election season, keep off the grass, and leave the matter to the people's court". When Mr. Seshan implemented existing laws firmly, all in the media were up against him, the advice again was he should understand his limits. Anna Hazare tries to force these honourable members to enact a law that will check corruption and many in the media say he is going overboard. Is he people's court? Going by the popularity he has I would venture a 'yes'. Can the media state its stance clearly - for or against corruption, coercion, implementation of laws as designed to be deterrent.
Its of no value to object to the derisive act of EC of covering colossus statues in UP which won't do any good, but a possible counterproductive effect to other contestants than BSP.If EC move is an independent one then intervention is needed to bring more transparency and effectiveness in election but if its the one evolving from 10 Janpath team then...........I can't take it.
I don't think covering the statues or leaving them bare will have much of an effect on a modern voter. And need of the hour is having laws which discourage these statues erection at first place.
We should better have some laws to check the erection of such memorials and statues that may have unconstitutional consequences.
This makes me feel that election commission is works under the influence of central government like any other central agencies.... Public is now grown up unlike 1960s......& use its brain while voting..Problem with the system is that very few people are left in politics with courage to do the welfare of the state... We, the public must ensure that right People from every party is voted....& discourage foul politics. The key for prosperity is with us only....our vote must ensure the right candidate & note these are mere statues.......
Regarding decision taken by EC to cover the statues of the great memorial which build for the sake of enlightenment of the Dalit and to carve the niche in the glorious history of struggle against the racism has certainly affected the social balance.The EC would have followed the moral values rather than the Rule book.The today's Indian people will never vote to the party blindly just because of the great memorials.It is thoughtless act to cover all the statues.It surely hurt the democratic structure of India where there are Equality,Fraternity are prevalent because of our constitution. One must follow this to decide what to do.
I don't agree with the views of the editors at all. I am disappointed by their views in fact. Yes, maybe it is true that the covered statues will get all the more attention, but that's NOT EC's job. EC's job is to go by the rule book. If a precedent exists and EC has followed such a rule for some other party in the past, then it has to follow that rule now. Otherwise, the very same people who are terming this order ridiculous will accuse EC of being selective in its treatment, and biased. Tomorrow, the BJP might have said that : "Look you implemented this rule against us; so why not against BSP". It's extremely essential for a democracy that EC goes strictly by the rule book. Maybe the covering will give advantage to Mayawati after all. Maybe she will be able to whip up the caste passion by invoking this order, and hence sweep the elections. But, it NOT EC's job to see who wins and who loses and who gets what advantage. EC's job is to ensure free and fair election. Period.
A flourishing democracy, just and equitable society frees the people to perform at their best, reassures them to make sacrifices to secure common rights, be altruistic/community minded. It encourages people to be good. Democracy can only succeed if people can make informed choices, candidates are carefully selected (how can law breakers and criminals qualify?), there isn’t too high a barrier to enter as a candidate and there is a level playing field, voter bribery (vote bank politics) or intimidation (making issue of BPL cards or other welfare benefits conditional upon casting votes) made illegal and scrupulously enforced, unfair campaigning (excessive funding, advertising, patronage, paid sponsorship by media or celebrities etc) rooted out, and the representatives are held accountable continually (not once every election cycle), and removed/recalled for illegal actions or misuse of office . THE EC and THE SC ARE THE GUARDIANS INDIAN CITIZENS LOOK UP TO! Responsible media ... contd
I would agree with Najeeb that people and the editor step back and think
before making wild assertions. It is possible that Mayawati may not have
done this merely as a megalomaniacal reaction and intended to induce a
particular behaviour from the public. The draping too would send a
message that no one is infallible. Observations that do not understand
behavioural dimensions I think risk missing the point completely.
Erecting statues, covering them, painting them will not afffect votes by any means; only getting the job done will give you votes, unless the voter is more concermed about any other thing, like any ideology, say of religionn or caste etc. The Electin Commission is trying its level best to put all other contenders on a level playing field. Let us wait and see if this influences the results of UP elections.
I don't know whether BSP has filed Ecs order before the court of law?
But prima facie it appears that order /dictate is proactive . EC should
have studied the matter in detail.
This is quite an amazing gesture on the part of the EC.As correctly pointed out by the author , rather than negating the effect it increases the effect of people being attracted by their innate curious nature to try and find out whats hiding.Clearly in another television program the other day , I was seeing that the visitors to the Mayawati Park has increased manifold and paople are taking pictures in front of the elephants which will be kept covered for a long time due to the elections.Their logic to get a last glimpse of the elephants.And if that is the case , everyone should cover their palms with gloves lest they represent the congress symbol,there should be no lotus flowers blooming anywhere in UP and adding to the numbers for BJP !! Clearly a senseless and misplaced act on the part of EC.
its really unfortunate that elction commison has lost its senses....this act of covering statues has already gained a lot of publicity that has gone to mayawati.....so in all this act of covering the staures has just wasted crores pf rupeees which can be used to provide proper shelter to poor..who are dying of cold in north india
Will the election commission on the same logic order removal of all LOTUS flowers from the ponds in UP and order that the HANDS of all people in UP to be covered till the elections are over??? The EC order is ridiculous!!
We have lost "rational"thinking some time back.The statues were built over several years and EVERY ONE including the Lawyers who filed ptition in the highest courts are aware of the colossal National Waste this pet project of a politician has caused.Even the SC had given permission to about 450Cr construction. We should seriously THINK AND FIND REMEDIES in this competition to show one up man ship.Can a captive Assembly give absolute Power to an elected person to waste so much when our children need basic food,clothing,medical care,education etc and millions live under the Poverty Line.However,the action by the EC is questionable on its intent and effect.Unhealthy influence on Voters can be exerted in many ways.The opposition could have USED the statues to expose the cynical concept of these construction.
Indian electorate doesn't fall for statues and has exercised its mandate wisely many times. So, there is no point in covering the statues while leaving other statues of other leaders .
it is true that many states have produced number of charismatic leaders.Even today,people remeber such leaders like N.T.Ramarao in Andhra Pradesh,Dayanand Bandodkar in Goa,etc. To respect and remember their practices statues of such icons have been erected. can Election Commission cover all such statues during elections all over India especially during Lok Sabha elections?it is difficult and not an effective procedure to be followed during the elections as a part of model code of conduct.t
The point to note here is that our country cannot afford to be in damage control mode for all its life. why no action was taken when the statues were in making? Surely, when such a huge amount of public money is invested in any project, government must be keeping some kind of record or does it give all it's leaders the highest moral scoring and let them do as they wish. Also the court case is simply embezzlement of public money. So what's taking so long for our court to arrive at the conclusion?
If not this time but such bold steps give a good message for a long time.. Many times EC, including his last order of removing Atal Bihari Vajpayee's pic from highways has came with same set and planning.. I think its very hightime to SC to set a guideline for such behavious to stop any further confusion regarding any such guidelines in futures. Otherwise It was a bold decision and should be analyse much carefully before giving any wild comments .
It is an infectious disease, the phenomenon of 'refusal to think'. The Election commission having taken the extremely provocative step, went on to justify the cost of covering up the statues as of no consequence and saying that the principle is more important.
This newspaper carried an article on ANC 100, a few days back, to remind us of the Apartheid struggle. The prevalence of the same kind of phenomenon in the form of upper caste dominance against the SC/ST continue to rule roost and is pervasive in many forms. This caste domination in the North is very acute and no wonder all the forces come together to fight or root out the common enemy viz. Dalit beti. As one onlooker of this cover up tamasha, commented in a news channel that you can cover up the elephant statues but how will u prevent the people from voting for the elephant in the election.
It will be a fresh and productive start for India the day its institutions will give up their counterproductive 'control' mentality. When this day will come, they will foresee problems and 'act' in advance to get to solutions before the problems are already burning their hands and they find themselves unable to deal with them effectively. Sorry, it has to be a respected institution like the EC this time ! Have others, more directly concerned with the problem, when it was in formation, left the 'hot potato' deliberately into the EC's hands in a passing-the-buck reflex? Looks like it.
It is nothing but hyper sensitivity of the election commission. After
Anna Hazare phenomenon in August, every institution in India is now in
a mad race to show that it goes only by the rule book . But the daily
life and bread earning activities in any economy do not go strictly by
rule book. These activities go by intermingling and simultaneous cross
action of several forces, e.g., one may not be allowed to jump red
light but the ambulance carrying a patient may be allowed to jump red
light though it may involve another accident. What is happening in
india is that instead of the economy having a vibrancy all activities
are showing sign of decay and resistance to decision making process.
The underlying factor is "FEAR" in the mind of person sitting in the chair. Perhaps people will fed up with this state of affairs shortly.
I don't think people's support for or against a political party is so fragile as to get influenced by erected statues of a political party. Moreover these statues were not erected overnight just before the poll. They are there for sufficiently long period and if they could tilt public opinion in favour of the BSP, they perhaps have done so by now. If massive waste of public fund that has gone into the establishment of those statues does not influence people to vote against the BSP, there is hardly anything that will encourage people to vote in favour. Covering of statues or leaving them bare is not an issue.
The act of the Election Commission of India constitutes an elephantine absurdity. The EC would have adhered to the model code in letter but not in spirit. The thoughtless step inflicts a double whack on the exchequer. Already substantial sum has been siphoned off in installing the monstrous statues. Now, the huge money spent on covering them up constitutes another drain on the coffers of the State that reels under lack of fund for develpoment. The electorate comprises people whose age starts from 18 years. So, those who exercise their franchise are mature enough to weigh the political panorama to adopt a judicious decision in the matter of electing their candidate. The foolish act of the political parties holds no magic on modern voters.
As the Petitioner in the Supreme Court I would argue that it is high time the Supreme Court decided the matter. A set of guidelines need to be laid down as far as the question of misuse of funds from public money. About 5000 crores have been spent on these memorials to glorify the Chief Minister. It is a criminal waste of money and people responsible need to be questioned.
I remember,when I read about EC decision to cover all the statues of BSP
related in UP,I didn't control my laugh.The covered statues compared to
free statues will gain more attentions.People will ask others "What is
behind the covering (PARDE KE PICHE KYA HAI).Any concealed things get
more attention.And most importantly,it's not going to give any benefit
to BSP.This order is just a childish act.
The question whether somebody has the legal rights to erect statues of any entity is not provoked by the actions or decisions of the EC. If it after all mounts the proclivity towards the considered party, then what is this BHARUA all about. What the EC has done is merely constitutional obligations on its part. And though should be taken as a welcome step for all political parties. Lets leave for UP people to decide their fate for the next five year. The judiciary would play its role as it does so including but not only the present girlish PINK problem. there are two type of stone or statue that could be erected, one out of pride and the other of ego which has a huge difference.
In a monarchy the rulers are flattered by having public places named after them - eg Victoria Memorial in Calcutta, or named after a few loyal families - eg Westminster Hall in London. Fortunately these places are few & the citizens do not feel intimidated. These days in democratic India it is rare to find a sq. km in any important town that does not bear the names of 'political leaders' or statues of them! The names not only adorn roads, parks, airports etc. The personalities are not just people Indians want to be inspired by and almost never non-politicians; they are usually from a handful of ruling families. Does this create a false impression in a democratic republic, that the people may still be ruled by monarchs or aristocrats, and worse - when people’s welfare schemes and hospitals are named after them – are they being reminded to feel grateful and swear allegiance to those families ONLY? Will we see next starting of new eras, renaming of months and creation of public holidays?
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