Commentary/Dilip Thakore
Universal adult franchise was a mistake
On the eve of the forty-seventh anniversary of the nation's Republic
Day, the mood of the citizenry was sombre to the point of being
sullen.
Two score and seven yeas ago a constituent assembly comprising
men of great intellect, learning, acumen and insight bestowed
the Constitution of India upon an eager and expectant citizenry.
This Constitution, the product of scholarly debates unmatched
since then, is perhaps the finest document of its kind and in
ringing tones articulated the high hopes and aspirations of a
nation which promised to emerge as a dignified an accomplished
player on the world stage.
Four decades later the noble dreams of the founding fathers of
the Constitution seem to have been transformed into vain and unattainable
dreams.
The Republic of India is listed among the 20 poorest nations in
the world; half the population is wholly illiterate; Indian society
is a seething cauldron of caste and communal turmoil; all over
the country the infrastructure is on the point of imminent collapse;
government and the bureaucracy is unremittingly corrupt, and the
shadow of chronic political instability and anarchy looms large
over the Republic.
Even as I write, blueprints are being drawn up to celebrate the
fiftieth anniversary of India's Independence Day on August 15.
Almost every organisation of weight and significance is planning
a big blast for this milestone occasion.
But surely the time of the nation's establishment and intellectual
community between Republic Day and Independence Day would be better
spent in contemplating amendments to the Constitution which could
usher in a second Republic - a new society which would work more
assiduously to fulfill the eminently attainable dreams of the
noble authors of the Constitution.
Because the plain truth is that in the fiftieth year of its existence
as an independent democracy, India has little cause for celebration
or self-congratulation.
The challenge of planning for a new, more equitable second Republic
is formidable. Perhaps more formidable than the challenge confronting
the members of the Constituent Assembly which debated and drafted
the Constitution of the First Republic.
The population of the nation has trebled from 300 million half
a century ago to over 900 million now. Today the number of the
abjectly poor outnumbered the entire population of the nation
when it began its march on the freedom road. And virtually every
sector of the economy is plagued with endemic shortages as the
nation struggles to cope with the demands of its huge and growing
population.
So where should the process of mid-course correction which would
lead to national reconstruction in the age of a second republic
begin?
Quite obviously at the beginning; at the source and charter of
the first republic - the Constitution.
In retrospect it is quite clear half a century later that the
basic premise of the Constitution - universal adult franchise
- was a mistake. That the majority of the elected representatives
of the people are petty, casteist, communal and corrupt to the
core to boot, is proof enough that conferment of the right to
vote without qualification was a fundamental error.
Unable to comprehend the basic grammar of the nation building
the great illiterate and barely-literate majority is electing
divisive, anti-national representatives to the councils of government
with increasing frequency.
I'm fully aware of the grave import of any proposal to abridge
the right of universal adult franchise conferred upon the people
of India by the founding fathers of the Constitution. Like the
great majority of liberals, I have hitherto been in the vanguard
of those who have consistently lauded the native wisdom of independent
India's largely illiterate electorate.
But more rigorous analysis reveals that this is a sentimental
and emotional rather than an accurate, conclusion. As is becoming
increasingly apparent, the vast majority of voters elect unworthy
representatives espousing regressive caste and communal particularism,
especially to councils of local government which are assuming
growing importance within the fast liberalising Indian economy.
It is also becoming increasingly apparent that ill-educated, myopic
and particularised elected representatives are unable to discharge
their primary functions of legislation and governance with even
minimal competence.
The great majority of people's representatives are petty businessmen,
if not small-time crooks, hell-bent upon utilising public office
for private profit. Citizens from within the nation's educated
middle class, heirs of those who wrested freedom from imperial
rule five decades ago, are disqualified by virtue of their probity
and learning from entering the councils of government. This explains
why all over the country things are falling apart and even localised
centres struggle to hold.
Moreover contrary to popular belief, the imposition of reasonable
restriction upon the right to vote offers a unique opportunity
to set right the greatest failure of successive administrations
in New Delhi and the states in post-Independence India: the failure
to eradicate mass illiteracy.
Post-modern development economists almost unanimously agree that
there is a vital nexus between mass literacy and national development.
The rapid growth and development of the economies of Southeast
Asia-South Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia and latterly China
- is increasingly being attributed to the success of national
governments in this region in eradicating mass illiteracy.
Therefore the imposition of a reasonable educational restriction
upon citizens entitled to vote in Lok Sabha, state assembly and
municipal elections will not only serve to improve the quality
of the nation's elected representatives, but will also give incentives
to illiterates at the base of the social pyramid to educate themselves
and break out of the vicious circle of illiteracy, high reproduction
and poverty.
The nation and the intelligentsia, in particular, need to debate
whether a constitutional amendment restricting adult franchise
to citizens who have completed primary schooling (up to standard
VIII) would be reasonable.
I believe that with almost all citizens having become accustomed
to electing their representatives to public office, the imposition
of such a restriction on electoral franchise is certain to give
a tremendous boost to the nation's hitherto ineffectual literacy
drive. And in the short run it will improve the quality of the
nation's elected representatives.
While making this radical proposal, I am wholly conscious of its
gravity. Universal adult franchise is a basic tenet of the Constitution
and interference with this perhaps the only asset of the poor
and marginalised, is likely to outrage liberal and intellectual
opinion. But drastic situations demand bold and courageous - even
drastic -solutions.
As the nation enters the fiftieth year of its Independence - an
independence which has proved illusory for the overwhelming majority
of its people - there is need to usher in a second republic.
A society in which the educated middle class which led the freedom
movement can re-enter the political arena and lead its citizens
out of chaos towards meaningful freedom. Surely this proposal
is worthy of a national debate in this milestone year of this
potentially great nation!
Dilip Thakore is the founder-editor of Business India and
Business World and former eidtor of Debonair.
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