Campaign and conduct
The Election Commission of India (ECI) advisory to political parties, asking leaders not to reach out to voters on the basis of ‘appealing to castes, raising communal passions and religious symbols, raking up personal issues, vilifying women and peddling half-truths’ is a case of closing one’s eyes to the true position. How caste, community and religion play out in all areas in public life, including politics, is well known. People want their representatives to be of good character and integrity, both in public and private. These can be ascertained only through more information on the candidates and their mode of activities being put out in the public domain.
The ECI’s directives often appear to infringe on this absolutely personal right of voters to select a candidate on any count of her/his (voter’s) choice.
