How fair is the Indian Election process ? By Deepak Parvatiyar August 1, 2014 To its credit, the Election Commission (EC) has, indeed, played a significant role in keeping Indian democracy alive. Yet, can it claim of consistency vis-Ã -vis ensuring a free and fair democratic process? It certainly demands a close scrutiny. Seshan’s Path-breaking Contribution in cleansing the Elections Process All will agree that whenever we talk of fair and free elections, we think of a gentleman named Tirunellai Narayana Iyer Seshan. As the 10th chief election commissioner (CEC) of India from 1990-1996, he was literally a one-man crusading army, loved by the masses but feared by the political establishments. Ironically, the efforts that he made to cleanse the election process in the country, earned him a rather degrading sobriquet, ‘maverick’. Obviously the political class never liked his style of functioning and even made attempts to derail his efforts. In October 1993, P...
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