Thursday, 27 October 2016

Are Simultaneous Elections Desirable? A Debate on Possibilities & Challenges

New Delhi: A discussion was organised on 26th October at the India International Centre on the possibility of having simultaneous elections in India and the challenges which need to be overcome to make it a reality. Eminent speakers, including Shri Bhupender Yadav (Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha), Dr S. Y. Quraishi, former CEC, Prof Sanjay Kumar, Director of Centre for Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) and Dr M R Madhavan, President of PRS Legislative Research presented their views and answered multiple questions posed by the audience which constituted members from various research organisations, students and the media. The event was organised by Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and chaired by the organisation’s Founder – Trustee, Prof Jagdeep Chhokar.
The proceedings began with brief opening remarks by Prof Chhokar, emphasising the significance of elections. He said, “…elections are the most fundamental way of operationalising democracy”. Further he added that the discussion was an attempt to make an informed choice regarding the simultaneous elections and hoped to get concrete suggestions from the panel for action to improve the current scenario. 
While speaking on the “Possibilities of holding simultaneous elections in India”, Shri Bhupender Yadav put across his argument using Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy of means and ends. He emphasised that “…Elections are the means towards the end of serving the people. However, nowadays elections have become an end in itself”. He claimed that constant elections throughout the year all the over country act as a hindrance in the working of the government. He suggested that simultaneous elections will solve this problem and that, “There should be a pre-defined schedule for the elections and uniformity”.
Dr Quraishi, began by clarifying, “…this issue is not politically motivated”. Although he appreciated the idea of simultaneous election, he also mentioned that there is no clarity on how it will be implemented. He said, “…elections have become the root cause of corruption in the country.” He mentioned that political donations require quid-pro-quo, hence after winning elections, the politician-bureaucrat nexus indulges in “recovering the investment” and that is where corruption begins. He also emphasised on the fact “caste, religion and communal issues are perpetuated by constant elections.” 
Speaking on election expenditure, he pointed out that, “There is a limit on candidate’s expenditure but not on party’s expenditure. Thus, there should be a limit on the political parties’ expenditure. Secondly, there should be state funding instead of private funding for the political parties. Thirdly, the elections should be held within a shorter span of time. He said that the proposal needs to be “thought through” in detail as there are many logistics issues involved like additional requirement of EVMs and security forces.
Prof Sanjay Kumar, speaking on “the challenges in holding simultaneous elections in India” felt that the democracy had an intrinsic value, and added, “…efforts should be made to hold simultaneous elections in those state assemblies which are completing their tenure together rather than forcing simultaneous elections by law.” He stated that a, study by CSDS of 31 Assembly elections that were held along with Lok Sabha elections from 1989 to 2014 show that in 24 instances/elections the major political parties polled almost a similar proportion of votes both for the Assembly and the Lok Sabha, while only in seven instances was the choice of voters somewhat different. If elections are held separately then regional parties have a better scope of winning. He concluded by saying, “Simultaneous elections will curb the voice of people living at the margins of the society by strangulating the scope for regional parties which reflect local aspirations/issues. This will reverse the process of deepening democracy.”
While talking about the various legal roadblocks faced in ushering in simultaneous elections, Dr Madhavan agreed with Prof Sanjay Kumar’s views on “……wave election problem” and explained that when the public is deeply swayed towards a party, there might be more chances of the party winning not only during the general elections but also any assembly elections held around the same time which could drastically affect the role of the regional parties representing the marginalized communities of the country. Quoting Shri Praveen Chakravarty’s paper which analysed the possible effect of simultaneous elections on voter behaviour, he added, “The paper analysed the 2600 Assembly Constituencies in 16 elections and during simultaneous election, 77% of the time the same party was chosen in the assembly constituency as well as the parliament and in non -simultaneous elections, difference was 61%”. He concluded by asking whether it was desirable if the focus was shifted away from local issues and moved towards only the national issues.
The speakers took various questions from the audience, revolving around the fate of regional parties; scope for the formation of new parties and increased expenditure over EVMs in simultaneous elections. Dr Quraishi addressed these questions and provided several counter-arguments to the fellow panelists’ arguments. He disagreed with politicians’ stand that elections were a hindrance to the implementation of government schemes. 
Prof. Sanjay addressed the issue regarding the proliferation of regional parties. He re-asserted that “…simultaneous elections might lead to the decline in the political status of regional parties. It will cause reverse democratisation.” Further, he called out for “… the need of revision in the model code of conduct.”
Concluding the session, Prof. Chhokar stated that, “…‘one nation- one election’ is a surreptitious attempt to destroy the federal character of India.”  He argued that it was against the federal character of Constitution. Secondly, while disagreeing with Mr. Yadav, he stated, “that means and ends are interlinked.” He expressed his disagreement with Prof. Sanjay over the revision in the model code of conduct. He stated that revision of the model code of conduct would destroy it. He stated that the proposal for simultaneous elections was politically motivated.

MYRIAD COLOURS OF NORTH EAST WILL COME ALIVE AT THE NORTH EAST FESTIVAL 2016

Curtain Raiser NE Festival 2016
Image may contain: 7 people , indoor

·         4th edition, which promises to be bigger, to be held at IGNCA from 4th to 6thNovember 2016
·         3-day festival to promote the resplendent culture all the Northeastern states – including food, fashion, handicrafts, music, dance, tourism, creative performances and much more
·         Discussion sessions with all the stakeholders on key issues affecting the region to be also held during the event
·         Debut of the ‘North East Rock Battle’ amongst the colleges and bands of Delhi
·         A huge exhibition of products from North East called ‘Make in North East Exhibition’ by around 100 entrepreneurs from the region

New Delhi | October 26 2016: The fourth edition of the North East Festival – Connecting People, Celebrating Life – is set to enthrall the people of the capital and  is set to be organized from 4th to 6th November 2016 at the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts, New Delhi.  The North East Festival aims to showcase to the people of Delhi the rich cultural heritage of the North Eastern part of the country and integrate the Northeast with the rest of India. Over the last three years, lakhs of people have attended the North East Festival, which has gone on to become one of the biggest festivals of Delhi.

Just before the festival begins, a rock competition titled ‘North East Festival Rock Battle’ is being organized on 28th and 29th October, 2016 at Dilli Haat amongst the colleges and bands of Delhi, wherein 60 bands will perform. The winning band stands a chance of winning a trip to Dubai, with the second and third placed getting a trip to a domestic destination courtesy Spicejet.

The 3-day festivities will have fun and frolic galore will showcase the entire Northeast India in all its finest glory and colourful hues via art, crafts and culture, songs, dance and movies, food, sports and fashion and much more.

Headlining the North East Festival 2016 would be the musical festival comprising icons of North East Region such as Papon, Zubeen Garg, rapper Borkung Hrangkhal,  DJ Zaeden, rock bands Traffic Jam, Fourth Element, Mo & The Shooting Stars, Reverse Tragedy and many more.  Raax Leela of Manipur, around 20 folk dance forms, along with the famous Ram Vijay Ankia Bhaona of Assam will be presented by Sangeet Natak Akademi. Fashion shows comprising of the best North East handlooms would be showcased by around 20 talented young designers and models of the North East region.  For food lovers, an exotic collection of delectable cuisines from the North East with around 30 food stalls will be on offer.

North East is also famous for its traditional sports. North East Festival would display the traditional sports of North East with around 14 sports which would be part of the festival. Live art, a photography exhibition showcasing the vivid wildlife and natural beauty of the region, an art workshop with 20 talented young artistes of North East, plenty of interactive games – the gala North East Festival will have it all!

A large exhibition of products from North East called “Make in North East Exhibition”, including handloom & handicraft, agro and food products would be on display with around 100 entrepreneurs participating from all across the North East region, who would present their products.

North East Festival is an effective platform for raising the critical issues affecting the North East.  Mr. Shyamkanu Mahanta, Chief Organiser, North East Festival said, “This year we will be holding a seminar dedicated to flood and erosion that affects the region, which would see experts from IITs across the country who would congregate and discuss about the Brahmaputra to find a permanent solution to flood and erosion issues along with stakeholders of NER.  The seminar would be presented by Water Resources Department, Govt. of Assam and would see participation from various multilaterals and the Central Government. Assam Tourism would be presenting a seminar on ‘Awesome Assam’ with tour operators across the country.  There would be discussion on sports, B2B Meets on tourism and many more.”

Mr. Mahanta also informed that one of the core objectives for this edition will be to promote tourism in the region and plenty of tour operators and tourists are slated to attend the North East Festival.  He added that it would also be a platform to promote business for North East entrepreneurs, apart from building bridges with Delhi.

Debate ADR: Simultaneous Elections is Scammed Democracy

GINT 2016 – Geisteswissenschaften International Nonfiction Translators Competition

Cyrus Mistry’s mysterious ouster:

Cyrus Mistry’s mysterious ouster: Tatas may sync with global trends
October 25, 2016,
Rajiv Kumar
The terse, bland press statement from Bombay House about Cyrus Mistry’s departure left me bewildered. This was worse than any scene from corporate fiction in which the CEO is given the pink slip at the shortest possible notice.
This is most unusual and not in keeping with the reputation of good corporate governance that the Tatas had earned over the past decades.
It also may not be that easy for the appointed five-member search committee to find a replacement with solid credentials and a modicum of self-respect. That would, unfortunately, but expectedly, boil the search down to another insider from the community. Will that not be a pity?
There can be three possible explanations to this most unusual action.
First, that Mistry genuinely felt that he was not up to the job of shepherding a sprawling conglomerate whose expanse across sectors and geographies defies all attempt at finding an organisational or operational coherence.
This explanation is most unlikely because Mistry did not seem to be a quitter and his exertions over the last four years would also tend to deny this possibility.
Second, that he was found wanting on performance and was summarily removed from the position by Tata Sons, in which the Tata Trust – still headed by Ratan Tata – and Shapoorji Pallonji hold controlling shares.
Given that nearly all of Tata companies – including the laggard Tata Motors – have seen a rise in their market capitalisation over the past year, the performance according to this visible yardstick could certainly not be faulted.
Other performance criteria are trotted out on the electronic media by current and former Tata PR hacks. These includ, ‘poor communication style’ (sic); indecisive leader qua the back and forth with Tata’s steel operations in Britain and Europe; and inability to find the CEO of some Tata companies.Redrawing Top, Bottom LinesThese are all second-order and weak criteria if they are at all relevant, given that both the top and bottom lines of the group as a whole were doing fine. In business, these are the two principal criteria that should matter.
Apparently not for Bombay House. The argument that only a couple of Tata companies were keeping the entire group afloat is neither here nor there. It has always been the case.
So for me, the third explanation looks to be the most plausible. This is the traditional case of the Tata Group’s corporate satraps rising against the CEO. With a difference. In that on this occasion, unlike in the case of Russi Mody and Darbari Seth et al versus Ratan Tata, the satraps have won.
There was already news of some of them chafing at Mistr’s attempt to make the group leaner and more focused and bringing in external consultants for greater professionalism. The satraps, who are best left unnamed, have pushed back and apparently received the backing of Tata Trust, whose chairman, reportedly, did not have as hands-off an approach as is claimed.
Abesieged Mistry, closeted by satraps on one side and the Trust on the other, could well have given the classic CEO ultimatum of ‘my way or the highway’. In this case, he was unceremoniously told to get on the bike.
pi
Ratan Uncle, can I open my present now?From all accounts, this seems to be a personality-driven outcome – and, hence, neither well-prepared nor well-executed. We could give it the spin of being a clash of opposite cultures. But it would be just that: a spin. After all, Mistry has been on the board of Tata Sons since 2006 and has the genetic inheritance for all the required culture to have been ingrained in him.
In some sense, he was the quintessential Tata man: quiet, understated, focused, a believer in professionalism, and committed to the larger corporate and national cause. In the absence of any explanation from any of the Bombay House reticent denizens, this would appear to be the best conjecture.
This can be a watershed event in the Tata group’s long history. Does a holding company like Tata Sons bring any value to its globally competing constituents?Ta-ta to Old Style
Even the Japanese Zaibatsus (the pre-World War 2 industrial and financial business conglomerates) or the South Korean chaebols (large family-owned business conglomerates) have changed their functioning to be in sync with globalisation trends and requirements. It is time that Tatas did so as well.
This may also yield some positive externalities as individual Tata companies focus more on product innovation and related R&D rather than try and use the advantage that Bombay House afforded them of being on the inside track of the regulatory regime and nimbly negotiating the Kafkaesque Delhi bureaucracy. This could change the operational model of India Inc.
The writer is senior fellow, Centre for Policy Research

“Digital Inclusion: Moving One Step Closer”

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