This ought to be of relevance to our interest.
The 'counter-affidavit' submitted by the Union government to the Supreme Court in the Ashok Chavan case is a scandal. Simply put, it argues that the Election Commission of India has no power to disqualify a candidate on the basis of his or her poll expenditure accounts, even if those have been falsified. It holds that the ECI's power to disqualify a candidate "arises only in the event of failure to lodge an account of expenses and not for any other reason…" The government is, in the process, calling for a radical and dangerous change in the way polls are conducted in India. If there is one issue on which there is a consensus in the country, it is on the damage inflicted on free and fair elections by the unbridled rise of money power. Now the government argues that the "correctness or otherwise" of the accounts is no concern of the body that conducts and regulates elections. The United Progressive Alliance government is behaving with the ECI the way it has with the Comptroller & Auditor General. It is trying to bat its way out of ugly scams and scandals by seeking to curb the independence of these constitutional bodies. This is dangerous for accountability and for democracy, given the signal role assigned to the Election Commission in our political system.
Background story:
228) Is the 'Era of Ashok' a new era for 'news' P
(online breaking news Nov.29, print Nov.30
230) 'It is a shame to misguide people' P
online, Dec. 23
245) Private Treaties harm fair, unbiased news: SEBI
247) The Empire strikes back -- and how!
254) ECI gets tough on electoral abuses
252) New ECI division to tackle 'paid news', money power
267) Censorship by pay-to-print
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