'EC reluctant to discharge duties': Former civil servants group's statement

A collective of former civil servants, named the Constitutional Conduct Group (CCG), has issued an open statement reminding the authorities and institutions in charge of the process of government formation of their “paramount duty to abide (by) and uphold the Constitution of India”.

With six of the seven phases of the Lok Sabha elections over, the CCG has accused the Election Commission of being “reluctant” to discharge its duties, “despite violations being repeatedly brought to its attention by responsible organisations and respected members of society”.

Need to “appear” fair

The members have argued that to “retain the faith of the ordinary citizen”, the responsible authorities and institutions — including the higher judiciary, the Election Commission, the chief electoral officers in every state, and the returning officers in every district — “must not only be fair but also appear to be fair”.

They “must reassure the citizens of the fairness and integrity of the process through their consistently transparent and accountable functioning, and by continuously sharing information with the electorate”, the CCG has said in the open statement.

“Concerns” about “fairness” of polls

They have pointed out the “concerns” that have been raised about the “fairness” of the elections, especially with regard to “fears that the EVM and VVPAT machines can be tampered with, instances of single persons unlawfully voting on behalf of many voters (some videos of this are in circulation), of many people, especially of vulnerable groups, finding their names missing from the voters’ lists”.

The CCG statement has also mentioned the “refusal of the Election Commission of India to disclose the exact numbers of votes cast in each constituency”. However, on Saturday (May 25), the Election Commission did come out with constituency-wise data on the number of votes cast in the first five phases of the elections.

The poll panel also said that any changes in the number of votes polled was just not possible. “Nobody can change data of votes polled, shared on poll day with polling agents of all candidates through Form 17C,” it said.

“Little visible action against hate speech”

Also pointing out the “little visible action against hate speech targeting both minorities and the opposition parties by senior leaders of the ruling party”, the CCG said it would have been “fitting for the Election Commission to publicly explain actions taken, and not taken, by the Commission to address these problems and allay the fears of the electorate”.

“It pains us to say that no Election Commission in the past has been as reluctant as the present one to discharge its duties, despite violations being repeatedly brought to its attention by responsible organisations and respected members of society. We hope they will not continue to show this disregard in the time that is remaining,” the statement says. The CCG has also emphasized the importance of ensuring the safe custody of the EVM machines.

A “reminder” to President

While bringing up the topic of a possible hung parliament, the organisation has in the statement also reminded the President of India of her pledge to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and the law” and to devote herself “to the service and the well-being of the people of India”.

“We are sure that she will follow the established democratic precedent of first inviting the pre-poll alliance that garnered the largest number of seats. Also, that she would endeavour to pre-empt the possibilities of horse-trading,” the statement says.