Election : The People who cast the votes don't decide an election, the people who count the votes do.
Free and fair elections are said to be the hallmark of a healthy democracy. This means having elections where there is no interference on the part of the incumbent government gives rise to an efficient and robust democracy. But the purpose of an election is, however, not to be used as a hallmark. Instead, elections are the means to achieving the wills and desires of the people systematically. In India, people often call elections as the festival of democracy.
This is because India being a vast country it is difficult to keep track of the standard of elections everywhere. Yet, the apex body for conducting and regulating elections in India ensures that every election takes place smoothly. While elections are the means to achieve what the people desire, political parties play an essential role in the conducting of elections.
The political party which constitutes the government at the time of an election has to ensure total transparency. Other political parties have to see to it that they do not resort to any unfair means. The government ensures transparency through adequate measures like VVPATs and EVMs. Before each political election, parties engage in active campaigning.
The purpose of campaigning is to provide the public with what the respective parties are willing to do when they come to power. All these are highlighted in a document which is called the party manifesto. The manifesto contains, in detail, the achievements of the party in the past and its promises for the future. The public, however, votes for a party not only by going through a manifesto but also based on its performance. In the case of elections, another essential thing is political ideologies.
In India, some people favor the doctrines of the left, and some people find the ideologies of the right to be proper. Voting in an election also takes into account what a voter believes in. Security forces also play an essential part in the conducting of elections. They are deployed in places where elections are to take place in advance.
The security forces manage the situations at polling booths and see to it that everybody obeys the laws at the time of the election. Speaking of rules, the model code of conduct is an essential segment of conducting elections. The model code of conduct prescribes how people associated with the election process apart from the general public should do themselves.
The model code of conduct is usually activated a week before the elections and gets terminated with the conclusion of the same. Elections are the only way in which the people of a country realize their dreams and aspirations. It is hence vital to conduct them and that too in a free and fair manner.
