In the history of independent India, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has conducted 400 assembly elections and 17 Lok Sabha polls and never gave a disputed result, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar said, adding that despite all this, the poll body has to give “agni pariksha” every time.
Kumar, while addressing a press conference in Bengaluru on Saturday, also said that unlike what is happening in some of the developed countries, the transition of power in India is smooth and is done by ballots and not bullets.
“The Election Commission of India has completed the 400th state assembly elections with completion of polls in Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland,” he announced, adding there are close to 4,200 assemblies across India and 400 elections in these constituencies were conducted over a period of 70 years.
Apart from these, so far, 17 times election to the Parliament and 16 times Presidential and Vice-Presidential elections were also conducted, he said.
“Not even in one case have the results been disputed. The transition of power has taken place smoothly through ballot and not by bullet. This is what the Election Commission is. It (transition of power) is happening much smoother (in India) than in most of the developed countries. You must not forget the pictures you must have seen in some of the developed countries about what happened after elections,” he said.
Kumar went on to say that in the past 70 years, India has stabilised its social, political, geographical and linguistic issues.
“In this country, democracy is established. Democracy is established because we trust our results. And still election after election, we give ‘agni pariksha’ every time,” he said, while responding to a question if people of Karnataka trust the ECI for free and fair elections.
Recalling the polls in Tripura, he said the headlines in the state were that it has voted out violence. “It is the institution of the ECI that is so strong that nobody can do it. Even if somebody wants to do it, they cannot,” he added, while referring to poll violence.
Kumar also said that to ensure free, fair and inducement-free elections, awareness and cooperation of citizens are key.
He said citizens can report any kind of electoral malpractices to the ECI through its cVigil App. For every complaint, there will be a response in 100 minutes.
The term of the Karnataka assembly ends on May 24. “The ECI is committed to conducting the upcoming state assembly elections in a free, fair, peaceful, and inducement-free manner,” he added.
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