Elections to local governments in India are seeing attempts to make voting mandatory in some states, with varying penal provisions being introduced to get citizens to the booth. Two private member bills referred to as the Compulsory Voting Bill, 2014 have been introduced by BJP MPs Janardhan Singh Sigriwal and Varun Gandhi respectively, to make a case for mandatory voting. Two previous bills to this effect were dismissed in 2004 and 2009.
The US too has been rife with a similar debate ever since President Barack Obama in an address in Cleveland in March mooted the idea stating that “it would be transformative if everyone voted”.
The Election Commission of India in reply to a public interest litigation had gone so far as to say that making voting compulsory violated the freedom of speech and expression. The Law Commission too held forth this opinion in its ‘Report on Electoral Reforms’ submitted to the law and justice ministry in March. “The Law Commission does not recommend the introduction of compulsory voting in India and in fact, believes it to be highly undesirable for a variety of reasons described … such as being undemocratic, illegitimate, expensive, unable to improve quality political participation and awareness, and difficult to implement,” it stated.
The US too has been rife with a similar debate ever since President Barack Obama in an address in Cleveland in March mooted the idea stating that “it would be transformative if everyone voted”.
The Election Commission of India in reply to a public interest litigation had gone so far as to say that making voting compulsory violated the freedom of speech and expression. The Law Commission too held forth this opinion in its ‘Report on Electoral Reforms’ submitted to the law and justice ministry in March. “The Law Commission does not recommend the introduction of compulsory voting in India and in fact, believes it to be highly undesirable for a variety of reasons described … such as being undemocratic, illegitimate, expensive, unable to improve quality political participation and awareness, and difficult to implement,” it stated.
Legislators who have participated in recent parliamentary debates, however, perceive it differently. They propose that mandatory voting is an effective measure to improve political participation through better voter turnouts. Further, it deepens electoral legitimacy, they argue. The practice, it is suggested, could also bring an end to the illegalities political parties indulge in to woo voters to the booths.
In Karnataka where compulsory voting was applicable for the first time in the panchayat polls, no enforcement mechanism was put into place. Gujarat in its recently notified rules has introduced a fine of Rs 100 for voters who default in local body elections upcoming in October, with 10 categories such as senior citizens or migrants being exempted. India is yet to build the level of infrastructure that facilitates voting before we think of introducing such punishing measures.
It is then pertinent to question why our democratic energy is wholly focussed on elections to the exclusion of other institutional mechanisms of citizen engagement. Isn’t engaging in urban ward committees and area sabhas or rural gram sabhas as crucial to a vibrant democracy?
Moreover, why should punitive measures solely be directed at citizens? As MP Bhagwant Mann argued on the floor of the Lok Sabha when one of these bills was being heard on April 24, why shouldn’t there be a penalty on political parties if they fail to live up to their manifesto promises? Now that is sure matter for another debate.
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