They released a document called “Election Commission – A Case for Reform” was long on innuendo and rhetoric but short on substance and logic. Early this year, for the first time in 25 years of communist rule in WB, the communist party admitted when confronted with EC data of institutionalized election fraud that included bogus voter lists, counterfeit ration cards, and falsification of data. Following serious allegations by opposition parties, the Federal Government nominated a 19 member team to monitor the elections in that state. This led to bitter complaints by communists that while a larger and more populous state like Tamil Nadu (TN) could complete elections in 3 stages, it was subject to several times more scrutiny.

They have continued to resist the EC and the monitoring team at every stage and now after a surprisingly larger victory, they complain about confusion over the EC’s role in the democracy and inherent “mistrust” of “elected State Governments questioning their commitment in defending the Constitution.” These seemingly clever arguments are aimed towards marginalizing the EC which has only in the last 18 years become more assertive and effective. After all, any citizen outside the political umbrella will tell the communists that they do not trust the State Governments to do the right thing and will want more powers to statutory bodies such as the EC. The confusion over the role of the EC is again pretense—the EC has only recommending authority but with self-serving political machinery in place, it has not option to assume the role of the executive by working with the collectors rather than the politicians.

What is “potentially dangerous” to the integrity of the democracy is a politically motivated move that will weaken an effective regulatory and independent body.