- The Indian citizens are by now familiar with the electoral process in the country, where one or the other poll is always happening throughout the year. Such is the situation that the Election Commission of India and the State Election Commission are perpetually preparing to undertake one or the other form of election. It could be a state assembly election, municipal/corporation, panchayat, by poll, and the mother of all elections, the Parliamentary polls. The preparedness, planning, and execution to ensure every single election is free, fair, and peaceful is a gargantuan task that the Election Commission manages with such finesse worthy of praise and emulation. The political parties are also perennially geared up for the challenge in their own ways.
PC: Metro Vaartha
- As we know, the ECI has recently announced state assembly elections in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Kerala, and Puducherry, respectively. All the major political parties have a reason to press ahead with the poll preparations full-throttle. The ECI has made the voting schedule tight this time. The moot point to ponder over here is whether parties can be tight-fisted with freebies. We know the answer. Don’t we? The four large states and a UT will vote between April 9-29, and results will be out on May 4. This round will be especially interesting because it’s the first after SIR. So, usual assumptions about the vote shares, etc, do not apply. Regardless, there will be punditry. Can Congress reclaim Assam? Can the BJP wrest Bengal this time around? Questions galore.
- Reams will be written on these, and the state of play in Tamil Nadu and Kerala also. And going by data, anything’s possible. In the 2024 LS polls, Congress and BJP were neck-and-neck in Assam, in terms of vote share. BJP had closed the gap with Trinamool in Bengal. Tamil Nadu seems unlikely to turn, but the BJP will be looking to grow there. Also in Kerala, the fight is between the LDF and Congress-led UDF. In three of the four states, these polls are a test of incumbency. Assam and Kerala have had the same party/grouping in office for 10 years, while Mamata in Bengal is finishing 15. Even if voter fatigue isn’t a factor, incumbents aren’t taking chances. That means more displays of prodigality. Hours before EC’s presser, Mamata hiked honorarium for purohits and muezzins.
PC: The Times of India
- Indeed, more promises of unconditional cash transfers will follow as manifestos are rolled out. Such transfers are likely to cost India Rs.1.7L cr this fiscal. The RBI and the Economic Survey have flagged fiscal populism as a risk for state finances, and even India’s sovereign borrowing costs, but who’s listening? In terms of stakes, the BJP has the least to lose in this round as it governs only one of four poll-bound states. But it will be fighting zealously to expand. Pressure is on Congress, though, as it has solo govts in only three states now. The Iran war and the resultant gas crisis have added a new variable to these contests. If shortages persist through March, voters will blame somebody. Those interested in polls will expect an intriguing couple of months from now on.
