With highly politically charged elections going on, we can not help but think the(the party that rules and ultimately voter connection) importance of voting in India. But almost every time we are faced with the stats revealing a less than 70% voter turn-out. So should there be a compulsory voting practice to fix this or would that be deemed meddling with the democratic right to freedom of people? We break down the whole voting scenario right from the start.
The Question of Why So Many Less People Vote!
This basic question has been troubling a lot of people and political parties alike. There have been many reasons for the absence of the people from the voting scene…
1.Most people from middle and rich classes don’t see their life much influenced by a change in political parties. It is mostly the poor section of the society that votes.
2.Many people are ignorant about the politics and political parties, so voting opportunities do not inspire them to bring a change in the political scenario.
3.Many stay away thinking politics is a play of money and muscle power, and thus, they feel they have no role to play.
But in reality, bulk voting can actually change the very problems due to which they are not voting in the first place. Making voting compulsory could actually be very beneficial. Let’s discuss them.
Benefits of Making Voting Compulsory
Making voting mandatory can improve the country’s democratic situation. Here are a few benefits which we can instantly foresee…
1.Strengthening of Democracy
The mandated voting can fortify the democratic set up of countries like India. With a compulsory voting in the background, Parliament can reflect the will of the electorate more accurately. In addition, in democratic countries casting votes should be a duty as it accounts for an essential part of the democracy.
2.Better Chances ‘Right’ Candidate being Chosen
If voting is mandatory, everyone votes, which means more turnout. Otherwise, if only a section of the society votes, an extremist party a special interest group can try to influence that small population and come to power. But with everyone in the picture, an election candidate has to look at the bigger picture and consider the interests of all rather than a few communities. And this will help in the development of a country as a whole.
3.Better Formation of Public Opinion about a Candidate
Some people argue against the favour of compulsory voting. They support their view by stating that with mandated voting an unaware voter can influence the result and undeserving candidates can come into power. However, that problem can be easily circumvented with the NOTA option. The voter can press the NOTA button if he is not in favour of any candidate. Plus, this would also spread information of the public opinion about that particular candidate.
4.Development of Knowledge of Politics and Government
A compulsory voting is bound to engage people in the study of political picture and the political parties. If the voting is not mandatory, an unaware person will never be compelled to vote and one might think that if one is not helping in the government formation process, one is not harming it either. But with mandated voting, they are not a silence observer anymore. They would then have to understand the government and this would naturally encourage their interests in the same.
5.Saving in Finances
Without the massive urge to convince people to vote, Election Commission can save expenditure in telling people about the need to vote.
Making voting mandatory can essentially help a developing country like India. Politically aware mass and a dedicated government are key ingredients to any successful nation. And making voting compulsory helps to achieve exactly that!
