जय हो,खारिज करने का हक
बहुमत खारिज कर दें सबको
तो कायाकल्प हो राजनीति का
Provided majority voters do opt for the reject button what would happen! Yes, reality show is awaited in Chhattishgargh elections where Maoists are campaigning for right to reject!
Palash Biswas
जय हो,खारिज करने का हक
बहुमत खारिज कर दें सबको
तो कायाकल्प हो राजनीति का
लेकिन ऐसा कुछ होना
संभव नहीं लगता
मौजूदा हालात में
कयास चाहे कुछ भी
लगाया जाये, राजीति
की गंगा उतनी है मैली है
जितनी राम तेरी गंगा मैली
थैली भले खुल जाये
पर गंगा रहेगी मैली की मैली
बाहुबलि राजनीति अब
राजनीति की मुख्यधारा
धनबल के आगे नतमस्तक
भारतीय लोकतंत्र
और कारपोरेट चंदे से
चलती राजनीति
चेहरे बदल जायेंगे शायद
फिरभी कारपोरेट राज
के विकल्प बहुतेरे हैं
नैतिकता के सारे मसीहा
आजादी के सारे मैसेंजर
कठपुतलियां है
औरडोर हैं कारपोरट
हाथों में यकीनन
हर गलत चीज
को सही साबित
करने की कवायद ही
अब संसदीय राजनीति
कमाने खाने का
बेमिसाल जुगाड़
बिना पूजी विशुद्ध लाभ
का कारोबार सड़क
की राजनीति भी
हर चेहरा मुखौटा है
हर विचारधारा
इस्तेमाल की चीज
इयुज एंड थ्रो
फिरभी छत्तीसगढ़ में
पूरे आसार हैं कि
मतादाता कर दें
खारिज सारे
उम्मीदवार
क्योंकि माओवादी
चुनाव बायकाट के
बजाय अब की दफा
सबको खारिज
करने का फतवा
कर चुके हैं जारी
और एक तिहाई
छत्तीसगढ़ अब
सलवा जुड़ुम के
सौजन्य से
माओवाद प्रभावित
The Supreme Court has directed the Election Commission to provide a button on voting machines to allow voters to reject all candidates. Provided majority voters do opt for the reject button what would happen! Yes, reality show is awaited in Chhattishgargh elections where Maoists are campaigning for right to reject!
Meanwhile,Former chief election commissioner SY Quraishi said that the Election Commission would screen the politicians making use of social media for canvassing and election purposes ahead of the assembly elections in five states.
He said that the Election Commission had issued guidelines on Friday to monitor political campaigning on social networking websites such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube ahead of the state assembly elections in the five states. Talking about the Supreme Court's ruling giving voters the right to reject, Quraishi said that this facility given to the voters would not affect the course of the elections. "The elections would remain unaffected," he said. He mentioned that the incidents of booth capturing and looting of ballots are a thing of past and now the elections are conducted in a fair manner. He said that the voters are aware about the voting rights. The awareness has increased tremendously in UP.
The former CEC said that the Election Commission would get the code of conduct implemented strongly and ensure that it is not flouted by the candidates. "The EC would be keeping an eye over the politicians giving hate speeches in political rallies. The EC is already monitoring the speeches given by the politicians," he said.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday attacked Raman Singh government in Chhattisgarh for failing to contain Maoist violence and curbing poverty in the state, while lauding her party for "sacrifices" and "pro-poor" development policies.
Addressing an election rally in Kondangaon in Bastar region, her first this election season, Sonia said the BJP government in the state was good at making "only tall claims" contrary to "reality on the ground".
"They (BJP) only promise, we (Congress) do the work," she said.
Congress is desperately trying to regain its hold in Bastar region, where tribals form a majority, as 11 of the 12 assembly seats in region are held by the BJP.
"Owing to their bad governance, poverty has risen in the mineral-resource rich state and its performance in health, education or other sectors has worsened. The women are feeling unsafe and subjected to atrocities," she said.
She recalled the massacre of several Congress leaders in a Maoist ambush on May 25 in Bastar and said Raman Singh had accepted his failure to prevent the attack.
"What is the point of shedding crocodile tears now," Sonia said, striking an emotional chord with the local residents.
"So many people were killed in the Maoist violence. My colleagues in Congress sacrificed their lives. We are feeling their absence in a big way today," Sonia said. The Congress president said many Maoist-hit areas lacked proper roads even though UPA spared no effort in supporting Raman Singh's fight against the Left-wing extremism.
She said the people of the state were migrating to other states because the benefits of UPA's flagship job scheme MGNREGA and Forest Rights Act, which ensures ownership rights over forest produce to the forest-dwelling tribals, have not reached them.
Modi attacks Sonia for 'deceiving voters'
Gujarat chief minister and BJP's PM candidate Narendra Modi on Thursday trained guns at Congress president Sonia Gandhi, asking her "not to deceive voters" in Chattisgarh.
"You are right, madam. You do everything without saying anything. You did the coal scam without saying anything. In the 2G scam also, you did not say anything. Scams took place beneath the earth, on the earth and in the air without you saying anything," he said.
Modi was canvassing for his Chattisgarh counterpart Ram Singh in Kanker, two hours after Sonia told a rally in Kondagaon "they (BJP) make promises while we (Congress) work". He also addressed rallies at Bastar-Jagdalpur and Rajnandgaon.
The Gujarat strongman said Singh had achieved a high rate of development amidst Maoist violence, a fact admitted by the Centre. At current pace, the state will surpass Gujarat's development in the next five years, he said.
Addressing the largely tribal audience at Jagdalpur, Modi said, "I salute the people of Chhattisgarh for rejecting Congress government. Vajpayeeji formed a separate ministry for tribals in Union cabinet, while Congress doesn't care about the tribals."
"Why did Chhattisgarh progress while Uttarakhand and Jharkhand were left behind? Because Congress ruled the two states," he said comparing them to BJP-ruled Chhattisgarh
Without naming him, Modi called Nitish an arrogant chief minister who did not act sensitively towards the victims of serial blasts that targeted BJP's rally at Patna on October 27.
Comparing Nitish to Raman Singh, Modi said, "Raman Singh met victims, set up an investigation committee (to probe Maoist attack that killed top Congress leaders). In Bihar, the government was behaving as if it was happy. See how a sensitive chief minister behaves and how an arrogant chief minister behaves."
Modi and Nitish were locked in a bitter exchange of words following the blasts that killed six and injured dozens, with the BJP accusing the Bihar government of laxity in security and the latter comparing the rally to "garbage dumped in the state".
Despite Congress' protest in the past, Modi once again addressed Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi as "shahzada (prince). In his speeches, he has been calling the Congress-led UPA government as "Delhi Sultanate", an allusion to the rule of Muslim sultans in medieval India.
"The shahzada in Delhi is hoodwinking people by saying they have brought the food security law; food security was first implemented by the BJP government in Chhattisgarh," Modi said.
IED's defused hours ahead of the rallies
A few hours ahead of the rallies of the two leaders, security forces recovered three powerful IEDs in Sukma and Narayanpur districts of Bastar, a vast and Maoist-affected region in south Chhattisgarh. Two improvised explosive devices of 25 kg each were found buried along the Dornapal-Chintalnar road in Sukma district and another explosive of 20 kg was found near the Orcha state highway in Narayanpur district. All the explosives were defused, said a police official.
"Owing to enhanced security operations, it is quite usual to trace one or two IEDs daily now. Across Bastar the Maoists have planted huge number of IEDs," Bastar inspector general of police Arun Gautam told Hindustan Times.
Chhattisgarh director general of police Ram Niwas the state police is has followed every security measure for political leaders visiting the state for election campaigning.
"Specialised forces have been deployed besides the usual troopers in higher strength and more officials been assigned the responsibility to maintain close supervision," Niwas told HT.
As many as 18 constituencies spread over eight districts in south Chhattisgarh will witness voting on November 11 while the remaining 72 segments will go into polls on November 19. As many as 985 candidates are in the fray for 90 seats.
NATIONAL, TEHELKA DAILYA- A+
Chhattisgarh Govt Asks ICRC To Roll Back Its Operations In The State
According to sources no MoU was signed between the ICRC and the state government for working in the region
According to sources no MoU was signed between the ICRC and the state government for working in the region. Besides this, the organisation was also required to complete some formalities with the central government before starting its work in the naxal areas. Before issuing the order for ICRC to stop all its activities, the Bijapur administration had issued a show cause notice to the organisation.
Tribal Bastar is one of the most backward regions of the country with very poor healthcare facilities and the arrival of ICRC was welcomed. Even the state government had expected that the tribals affected by the naxal violence would benefit greatly by ICRCs experience and expertise.
This is not the first time that an international organisation working in the area has been targeted by the state government. In 2008 the Nobel Peace Prize winning French organisation, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) or Doctors Without Borders, was also targeted. The district administration had accused the organization of providing healthcare facilities to the Maoists. After the controversy grew the government had to face embarrassment. After this the MSF was allowed to continue their work. The MSF is working in the areas of the Sukma district bordering Andhra Pradesh.
Anil Mishra More by the author >
For all updates on THiNK2013 visit thinkworks.in
Not enough,Rihght to reject has to do something in Jammu and Kashmir also.Please read:
India's electoral 'right to reject' gives headache to ruling parties in Kashmir
07 November 2013 - 06:04PM GMT |
The parties have argued that the NOTA option in EVMs can be used by pro-freedom parties to 'undermine' the importance of electoral process.
SRINAGAR — The introduction of 'right to reject' by Supreme Court of India to people casting their vote at the time of elections has given a severe headache to pro-India politicians in Indian administeredKashmir.
The pro-India parties led by the ruling National Conference and Congress party have sought Delhi's intervention in taking out the 'None of the Above' (NOTA) option which will be available on Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) from this year.
The SC in its judgment had directed the Election Commission of India to introduce NOTA button on EVMs so that the voters have an option to reject their candidates.
Expressing fears that the NOTA option will be used by pro-freedom parties to enforce a covert boycott and thereby 'prove' the legitimacy of the demands of freedom, Kashmir's chief minister Omar Abdullah and Kashmir's Congress committee have taken up the matter with officials at the highest level in Government of India.
The parties have argued that the NOTA option in EVMs can be used by pro-freedom parties to 'undermine' the importance of electoral process. "The chief minister has conveyed serious concerns to India's home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde, seeking remedial action," a Congress leader told Srinagar based KNS news agency.
A senior Congress leader said the issue was raised with Rahul Gandhi who is in on a two-day visit toKashmir. "He assured us that the issue will be thoroughly examined by the Congress high command and a decision will be taken accordingly," he said.
The Congress leadership in Kashmir is believed to have shot a number of letters to the Congress high command in Delhi to go for review of the Supreme Court judgment in context of the 'peculiar situation' in Kashmir.
"Tomorrow, if separatists urge people to participate in elections and press NOTA button, then it will be deemed as a referendum. This is how this option can be misused," the Congress leader said.
Pro-Pakistan Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Geelani started his election boycott campaign from Sopore where he urged a massive gathering of his supporters to boycott the elections which, he said, were used by India to further its occupation of Kashmir.
क्या है "राइट टू रिजेक्ट"
जब हम पोलिंग बूथ पर वोट डालने जाते हैं तो कई बार हमें कोई भी उम्मीदवार पसंद नहीं होता, कोई भी पार्टी पसंद नहीं होती, फिर भी हमें मजबूरन किसी न किसी उम्मीदवार को वोट डालना पड़ता है. अब उच्चतम न्यायालय के फैसले के बाद वोटिंग मशीन में एक 'नापसंदी' का बटन लगाया जाएगा. यदि आपको कोई उम्मीदवार पसंद नहीं है तो आप इस बटन को दबा सकेंगे. यदि इस बटन को बहुमत मिलता है तो वहां पर चुनाव रद्द किए जाएंगे और एक महीने में दुबारा चुनाव कराए जाएंगे. जिन उम्मीदवारों को सबसे ज्यादा जनता ने नकारा है (50 फीसदी से ज्यादा वोट पड़े हैं) उन्हें दूसरे चुनाव में खड़े होने की इजाजत नहीं होगी.
सामाजिक संगठनों की मांग
सामाजिक कार्यकर्ता अन्ना हजारे और आम आदमी पार्टी की हमेशा से ही मांग रही है कि "राइट टू रिजेक्ट" को कानून के रूप में लाया जाए. इस संबंध में चुनाव आयोग ने भी बहुत पहले सरकार को सुझाव दिए थे लेकिन कुछ हो न सका. वहीं दूसरी तरफ केंद्र सरकार और अन्य दूसरी पार्टियां इस कानून का विरोध करती आ रही हैं. उनके मुताबिक चुनाव किसी को चुनने के लिए होता है न कि रिजेक्ट करने लिए. इसके अलावा वह यह भी कहते हैं कि "राइट टू रिजेक्ट" से मतदाताओं में भ्रम पैदा होगा.
सदस्यता रद्द करने का फैसला
ऐसे ही एक कवायद में कुछ महीने पहले सुप्रीम कोर्ट ने अपने एक फैसले में दागी सांसदों और विधायकों को जोरदार झटका देते हुए कहा था कि अगर सांसदों और विधायकों को किसी आपराधिक मामले में दोषी करार दिए जाने के बाद दो साल से ज्यादा की सजा हुई, तो ऐसे में उनकी सदस्यता तत्काल प्रभाव से रद्द हो जाएगी. लेकिन हाल ही में सुप्रीम कोर्ट के फैसले को रद्द करने के लिए केंद्र सरकार अध्यादेश लेकर आई है. ऐसे में यह उम्मीद की जा रही है कि सुप्रीम कोर्ट द्वारा दिए गए इस अहम फैसले पर सभी पार्टियां कोई न कोई तोड़ जरूर निकाल लेंगी.
http://www.jagranjunction.com/2013/09/27/right-to-reject-in-hindi/
सर्वोच्च न्यायालय के नकारात्मक मतदान पर दिए गए आदेश को लेकर पूरे देश में भले ही नई बहस चल पड़ी हो लेकिन बिहार में इसे लेकर जनप्रतिनिधियों की भौंहें टेढ़ी हो गई हैं। जनप्रतिनिधि खुलकर तो इसका विरोध नहीं कर पा रहे हैं लेकिन आंकड़ें बताते हैं कि क्षेत्र में उनकी स्थिति ठीक नहीं है। भले ही वे क्षेत्र का प्रतिनिधित्व करते हों लेकिन उन्हें क्षेत्र के 50 प्रतिशत से कम ही मतदाता पसंद करते हैं। पिछले लेाकसभा चुनाव की बात करें तो बिहार में दो ऐसे सांसद हैं जिन्हें क्षेत्र में 10 प्रतिशत से कम लोगों का समर्थन मिला है। इस बीच उच्चतम न्यायालय द्वारा नकारात्मक मतदान को लेकर दिए गए आदेश के बाद राजनेता भी अपने क्षेत्र का नए सिरे से आकलन करने में जुट गए हैं। निर्वाचन विभाग के आंकड़ों के मुताबिक बिहार में पिछले लोकसभा चुनाव में अधिकांश सांसदों को 30 प्रतिशत से कम मतदाताओं ने पसंद किया। आंकड़ों पर गौर करें तो सारण से सांसद और राष्ट्रीय जनता दल (राजद) के अध्यक्ष लालू प्रसाद यादव को सारण के कुल मतदाताओं के 21.62 प्रतिशत मतदाताओं ने ही पसंद किया जबकि मधेपुरा के सांसद और जनता दल (युनाइटेड) के राष्ट्रीय अध्यक्ष शरद यादव को 24.57 प्रतिशत मतदाताओं का ही समर्थन हासिल हो सका है। इसी तरह पटना साहिब के सांसद और भारतीय जनता पार्टी (भाजपा) के नेता, फिल्म अभिनेता शत्रुघ्न सिन्हा का कुल मतदाताओं के 19.28 प्रतिशत मतदाताओं ने ही समर्थन किया जबकि सासाराम की सांसद और लोकसभा अध्यक्ष मीरा कुमार को मात्र 13.70 प्रतिशत मतदाताओं का ही समर्थन मिला। वैसे आंकड़े बताते हैं कि बिहार की 40 संसदीय सीटों में से 19 पर ऐसे सांसद हैं जिन्हें अपने क्षेत्र के 10 से 20 प्रतिशत मतदाताओं का समर्थन मिला है। ऐसे सांसदों में पूर्वी चंपारण के राधामोहन सिंह, गोपालगंज के पूर्णमासी राम, भागलपुर से शहनवाज हुसैन, बेगूसराय से मोनाजिर हसन दरभंगा से कीर्ति आजाद, मुजफ्फरपुर से कैप्टन जयनारायण निषाद, पाटलिपुत्र से रेजन प्रसाद यादव, आरा से मीना देवी, गया से हरि मांझी प्रमुख नाम हैं। बिहार के दो सांसद भोला सिंह और जगदानंद सिंह ऐसे सांसदों की सूची में शामिल हैं जिन्हें 10 प्रतिशत से कम मतदाताओं का ही समर्थन प्राप्त हुआ है। बहरहाल, आंकड़े जो कुछ कह रहे हों लेकिन उच्चतम न्यायालय के नकारात्मक मतदान के आदेश को जद (यू) के वशिष्ठ नारायण सिंह ने स्वागतयोग्य कदम बताया है। वह कहते हैं कि लोकनायक जयप्रकाश नारायण के आंदोलन के समय में भी इस मामले को उठाया गया था। हालांकि वह कहते हैं कि अगर इस पर संसद में भी बहस हो तो इसे और प्रभावी बनाया जा सकता है। बिहार के मुख्य विपक्षी दल भाजपा के सुशील कुमार मोदी ने भी इस फैसले का स्वागत किया है। इधर, मतादाताओं में भी इस प्रकार के आदेश को लेकर प्रसन्नता है। पटना विश्वविद्यालय के प्रोफेसर नवल किशोर चौधरी कहते हैं कि किसी भी उम्मीदवार को नहीं चुनने का अधिकार मिलने से लोकतंत्र मजबूत होगा। न्यायालय का फैसला सकरात्मक है। चुनाव प्रणाली में उम्मीदवार को नापसंद करने का एक संदेश मिल रहा है।
Read more at: http://hindi.oneindia.in/news/india/voters-have-the-right-to-reject-all-candidates-in-polls-sc-265186.html
ছত্তিসগড়ে মাওবাদী হামলার শঙ্কায় কেন্দ্র
রায়পুর ও নয়াদিল্লি: আশঙ্কা ছিলই৷ এ বার তাতে সিলমোহর দিল কেন্দ্রীয় স্বরাষ্ট্রমন্ত্রক৷
মন্ত্রকের সাম্প্রতিকতম নির্দেশিকা বলছে, ১১ ও ১৯ নভেম্বর দু'দফায় হতে চলা ছত্তিসগড়ে বিধানসভা নির্বাচন পণ্ড করতে জোর প্রস্তুতি নিয়েছে মাওবাদীরা৷ কিছুদিন আগেই ছত্তিসগড়ে প্রায় ৩০০ জনকে নিয়ে একটি বিশাল সভা হয়েছে মাওবাদীদের৷ এতে নাকি উপস্থিত ছিলেন মাওবাদী শীর্ষ নেতা মুপাল্লা লক্ষ্মণ রাও ওরফে গণপতিও৷ বিভিন্ন ভোটগ্রহণ কেন্দ্র ও সেখানে যাওয়ার রাস্তাগুলিতে বোমা রাখার পরিকল্পনা রয়েছে তাদের৷ ছোট ছোট দলে ক্যাডারদের সংগঠিত করে রক্ষীবাহিনী এবং পোলিং অফিসারদের উপর আক্রমণ হানার ছকও কষা হচ্ছে বলে গোয়েন্দা সূত্রে খবর৷
নির্দেশিকা জানাচ্ছে, অক্টোবর মাসের শুরু থেকেই নারায়ণপুর, বিজাপুর ও কানকের-সহ ছত্তিসগড়ের বিভিন্ন জেলায় বেশ বড়সড় দলে (প্রায় ৫০ জনের) সশস্ত্র মাওবাদীদের গতিবিধি লক্ষ্য করা গিয়েছে৷ দলীয় কর্মীদের ছোট ছোট দলে ভাগ করে বোমা রাখা, উপযুক্ত আক্রমণস্থল খুঁজে বার করা, ইভিএম যন্ত্র ও পোলিং বুথ লুট করা ইত্যাদি কাজের দায়িত্ব দেওয়া হয়েছে৷ কর্তব্য ঠিকঠাক পালন করতে পারলে পুরস্কারের ঘোষণাও করা হয়েছে বলে জানাচ্ছে নির্দেশিকা৷ বিভিন্ন পুলিশ অফিসার ও গ্রামপ্রধানদের ফোন নম্বর ও ঠিকানা জোগাড় করছে মাওবাদীরা৷ বিভিন্ন রক্ষী ছাউনির অবস্থান নিয়েও খোঁজখবর করছে৷ বিভিন্ন সূত্রে মাওবাদীদের তরফে বোমা তৈরির সামগ্রী এবং গাড়ি কেনার খবরও পাওয়া গিয়েছে বলে জানাচ্ছে নির্দেশিকা৷
শুধু দলীয় কর্মীদের সংগঠিত করাই নয়, জনগণের মনে ভয় ঢোকানোর কাজটাও শুরু করে দিয়েছে মাওবাদীরা৷ গোয়েন্দা সূত্রে খবর, ভৈরামগড়, কুত্রু, ফরেসেগড় ও নিমাড়ে বহু গ্রামবাসীকে ৩১ অক্টোবরের মধ্যে সমস্ত নিত্যপ্রয়োজনীয় জিনিসপত্র কিনে বাড়িতে মজুত করে রাখা এবং ওই তারিখের পর থেকে ৬৩ নম্বর জাতীয় সড়ক দিয়ে যাওয়া-আসা না করার নির্দেশ দেওয়া হয়েছিল মাওবাদীদের তরফে৷ ৩১ অক্টোবরের পর আর স্কুলে না যাওয়া এবং নির্বাচনী কাজে অংশগ্রহণ না করার নির্দেশ গিয়েছে সরকারি স্কুলশিক্ষকদের৷ দান্তেওয়াড়া জেলায় ১০ নভেম্বরের আগেই গ্রাম ছাড়তে নির্দেশ দেওয়া হয়েছে সব বাসিন্দাদের৷
এই পরিস্থিতিতে নিরাপত্তা বাহিনীকে সারাক্ষণ যুদ্ধকালীন তত্পরতায় কাজ করার নির্দেশ দিয়েছে স্বরাষ্ট্রমন্ত্রক৷ যে যে জায়গায় হামলা হতে পারে বলে মনে করা হচ্ছে সে সব জায়গায় নিরাপত্তা দ্বিগুণ করা, এবং বোমা রাখা হলে তা খুঁজে বার করে নিষ্ক্রিয় করার কাজ যত তাড়াতাড়ি সম্ভব শুরু করতে বলা হয়েছে৷ মাওবাদীদের গতিবিধির উপর নজর রাখতে ছত্তিসগড় সরকারকে মহারাষ্ট্র ও ওডিশা সরকারের সঙ্গে হাত মিলয়িে কাজ করার পরামর্শ দিয়েছে নির্দেশিকা৷
তবে এত করেও কি বুথে টেনে আনা যাবে ভোটারদের? ছত্তিসগড় একমাত্র রাজ্য যেখানে নিরাপত্তাজনিত কারণে দু'দফায় ভোট করতে হচ্ছে৷ ৫০ হাজারের বেশি আধা সামরিক সেনা পাঠানো হয়েছে রাজ্যে৷ ইতিমধ্যেই ১৬৭টি পোলিং বুথের জায়গা বদল করা হয়েছে৷ যার ফলে কোনও কোনও ক্ষেত্রে গ্রামবাসীদের প্রায় ১০ কিলোমিটার হেঁটে ভোট দিতে যেতে হবে৷ এতেও অবশ্য চিন্তামুক্ত নন মুখ্য নির্বাচনী আধিকারিক সুনীল কুজুর৷ তাঁর কথায়, 'ভোট দেওয়া যে নিরাপদ হবে তা কখনওই নিশ্চিতভাবে বলতে পারি না আমরা৷' - সংবাদসংস্থা
National Alliance of People's Movements
304, GKR Mansion, 6-1-89, Lakdikapul, Hyderabad
Phone: 9849718364/924656373/ 9010205742 email: napmhyderabad@gmail.com
Press Release 07th November 2013
NAPM Condemns Complete annihilation of small farmers in
World Agricultural Congress 5-7Nov.2013
Dubbed as "World Annihilation Forum", long back, World Agricultural Forum (WAF) has lived up to that and again succeeded in annihilation of small and marginal farmers, their right to discuss issues of concern to them, and created a distance between them and the policy-makers elected by them, in World Agricultural Congress (WAC) 2013.
Unfortunately, WAC 2013, WAF and government leaders from India failed to observe a minute of silence in memory of farmers who committed suicide in the aftermath of cyclone Phailin and heavy rains, just days before WAC 2013 commenced. Amidst a chaotic agricultural farm situation, with crop losses, stagnant water in the field, huge farmer debts, in Andhra Pradesh, WAC 2013 has begun and ended, with no reference to such a situation. In the past three days, no word has been uttered on the farmers suicides, or calamities faced by farmers in AP and elsewhere in India.
Achievements of World Agricultural Forum, at WAC 2013:
1. Successfully created barriers in participation of small and marginal farmers in WAC 2013 through high registration fees, high security, inaccessible place, alien concepts, using English as the basic medium of communication, prior development of topics without any scope for integration of local content, expensive 'corporate' atmosphere and inhospitable attitude.
2. Extraction of Statement from Union Minister of State for Agriculture Tariq Anwar conducive to their objective and agenda, including genetically modified (GM) crop seeds and contract farming.
3. By the participation of a Union Minister, Chief Minister, Agriculture Ministers of AP and Karnataka, WAF could get legitimacy to their organization and visibility to their anti-farmer objectives.
Difference between WAC 2011 (Brussels) and WAC 2013 (Hyderabad) is obvious. While WAF could not achieve government participation and partnership in a corporate-friendly US and Europe, in India, populated by independent, sovereign small farmers, government was eager to be seen with WAF functionaries. Participants were happy with the full operations and logistics service over three days, which included coordinating 75 speakers from 6 continents. However, in Hyderabad, delegates had to face tough time in getting accommodation, getting translation, etc., and had run pillar to post to get even the minimum needs done. In a international event, translation services are very important. However, local participants were not given any choice. Of course, this is in tune with the core objective of WAF and their sponsors, 'to deny farmers any choice'. The big saving grace, unfortunate though, has been the huge involvement of Department of Agriculture, Government of Andhra Pradesh, in terms of manning many 'conference' services, mobilization of farmers and other participants. Without the involvement of this Department, WAC 2013 would have been damp squib.
Our allegation that WAF is a lobbying organization of multi-national companies, especially Monsanto, was proved right when the Chairman of World Agriculture Forum Advisory Board and former Prime Minister of New Zealand James Bolger called for a political consensus on GM crops, and terming it as the only answer for reduction in food prices. Ignoring the distress among small and marginal farmers caused by profit-making agri-business companies, Union Minister of State for Agriculture Tariq Anwar call for helping companies in getting better prices for their products is completely unexpected, and deplorable.
Speakers and presenters and sponsors of WAC 2013 have deliberately tried to push agri-business as the only answer to increase food production, and GM crops as the means to increase productivity. No session or speaker who could give a wider perspective has been invited or included. Policy-makers, agri-business companies and private profiteers have to realize the farming is not a purely economic activity. Their corporate and business solutions give rise to many economic, environmental, social and quality questions. None of these questions were allowed to be asked at this Congress. WAC 2013 would have been useful if there was wider participation and scope for the views of different stakeholders. Views of farmers, consumers and taxpayers are very important, and not just those of profit-makers and their lobbying organizations.
Estimated, there are about 300 delegates, including 33 from various countries, will discuss in 29 sessions different aspects of agriculture and allied sectors. There will be 13 keynote addresses, 11 round table discussions and five concurrent sessions. However, there is no transparency and information sharing system. Typical of a 'closed' corporate event, even the media did not information. Small and marginal farmers who were invited were not allowed and were stopped at the gates. Police officials were posted inside the conference hall, creating an atmosphere of regimentation and barrier-full atmosphere.
We condemn the attitude of WAF and government towards farmers and farming community. We deplore lack of facilities and facilitation for participation of small and marginal farmers. We reject the condescending attitude of the organizers towards enthusiastic farmers, who travelled long distances.
We demand the following:
1. A public apology from World Agricultural Forum for creating barriers in participation of small and marginal farmers.
2. A statement from Government of Andhra Pradesh, and Government of India, clarifying that the presentations and announcements would have no bearing on policies of the government with regard to agriculture and welfare of small and marginal farmers. It should also include a declaration of disassociation from engaging with WAF in future.
3. A compensation package for farmers of Andhra Pradesh, who were distressed by recent cyclones, rains and bad quality seeds, from agri-business corporations and from the financial proceedings of WAC 2013.
4. Publication of all the expenditure incurred by the governments (State and central), and WAF in organizing WAC 2013, and sources of all the monies.
Saraswati Kavula, BRK Raju, Dr. K. Babu Rao, Dr. D.Narasimha Reddy,
Suhas Kolhekar, Maj.Gen. Sudhir Vombatkere
Right to Reject: Its Meaning and Implications
November 9th, 2011 → 10:50 am @ Nikita Anand
Introduction
After Team Anna demanded Right to Reject and Recall, newspapers and other media ran reports over these very new concepts. There is no doubt that Right to Reject and Right to Recall would mean revolution for the Democracy and Politics. People would be surely benefited but arguments against these Rights are equally strong. This article covers various aspects of Right to Reject. An article on Right to Recall can be viewed here. Reading both the articles would give you a clear picture of both the rights.
What is Right to Reject?
Candidates are chosen by the political parties but it might happen that people in the constituency are discontented with the candidates presented to them. On the voting machine, below the names of the candidates, a new option would be inserted which says "None of the Above". A voter may choose "None of the Above" option to express disapproval of all the candidates given on the list. If 'None of the Above' option gets the maximum votes in the constituency then all the candidates would be considered as rejected. In such scenario, re-elections would take place with new candidates.
The reasons why Right to Reject should be introduced:
1. Right to Reject gives people power to express discontent. If citizens are dissatisfied with the background or previous performance of the candidates, they may opt to reject all the candidates.
2.Right to Reject would check candidates with criminal records and parties would be forced to give tickets to good candidates.
3. If almost all the candidates on whom political parties spent crores of Rupees are rejected, they would be discouraged to spend their money.
4. Right to Reject would mean true democracy as the people will be able select their 'representative' in true sense of the word. The representative in all likelihood would be honest and transparent in his functions as a Member of Parliament because he has gone through rigorous selection procedure.
The reasons why Right to Reject should not be introduced:
1. With Right to Reject at their disposal, people will be able to express their opinion and cast vote rejecting all the candidates but this won't be counted against the votes cast in the candidate's favour. The number of selections of 'None of the above' must have maximum votes to initiate re-election.
2. On an average 60% of the voters cast their votes. More and more people are disenchanted by the politics today. Right to reject might become a fashion statement among them which would prolong election.
3. There are around 11 million teachers, staff and other officers who assist in conducting general elections. Also, tight security measures have to be taken by police for upholding law and order during elections. It would become tedious and unnecessary burden for everyone to conduct the whole activity again if candidates get rejected.
4. The cost would increase manifold if re-elections would have to be conducted. Increases the burden on the tax payers. Also, political parties would spend huge amount again to campaign for the new candidate.
5. In J&K and some North eastern states, the right to reject may be misused to create political instability. Every candidate presented to the people might be rejected again and again, sending a negative political message.
6. Voting in India is party oriented. Masses don't care who is representing them. Its the ruling party which matters.
Conclusion:
Though arguments in support of Right to Reject may be less in number but they outweigh the other side. Now-a-days, candidates with serious criminal background are imposed upon the public by political parties. This gives us no choice but to exercise our very limited options that is -to choose an incompetent/corrupt candidate or not to vote at all. In spite of all the efforts of the Election Commission, the election scenario continues to be dire. In such a situation introduction of Right to Reject may prove to be a breather for the masses. The issue of introduction of Right to Reject in J&K and some North-Eastern States must be dealt with very tactfully by the Election Commission.
Its up to the Election Commission and the Government now to weigh the Pros and Cons for Right to Reject and decide whether to introduce it or not. But considering the effort of various NGO's and other eminent personalities lobbying for it, we may hope that we will be granted with the "None of the above" option on the voting machine soon.
Express your opinion by way of comments! You might even have some points to contribute to this debate. We welcome both comments and criticism. Don't forget to share this article with your Facebook friends.
Link to article on Right to Recall
Article by-
Nikita Anand
Co-Founder and Editor, MightyLaws.in
Student, National Law Institute University, Bhopal.
http://www.mightylaws.in/828/right-to-reject-india
September 27, 2013#Democracy#Election#Vote
Right to Reject: A great step towards future electoral reforms to make our democracy vibrant and meaningful
Dear Friends,
This morning the Honourable Supreme Court directed the Election Commission to include negative voting by allowing the voters to reject all the candidates in an election.
I wholeheartedly welcome this. I am sure it will have a long lasting impact on our polity and will be a great step in the direction of further electoral reforms that can make our democracy even more vibrant and participative.
Friends, for a very long time I have called for a provision for a right to reject in elections. Without it, there was something lacking in the system. Right now, if there are ten candidates contesting from a seat, we are compelling the voters to choose from those ten candidates. This judgment will empower the voters to express their anger and reject all of them. The voters can give a message that we do not like the candidate or the candidates' party or the party policies. This will give out a very strong message to political parties- parties will be forced to think why is it that people are not accepting them. It will make parties more responsible.
Many friends in some political parties are skeptical of having a Right to Reject in forthcoming elections. However, I am not surprised. We introduced a bill on compulsory voting, which even included the Right to Reject but Congress Party opposed it tooth and nail. The bill was passed twice, in 2008 and in 2009 but it was then withheld by the Honourable Governor.
Compulsory voting too, has several advantages that can make our democracy stronger. It will even mitigate fears about elections becoming display of money power. Many citizens are disturbed by the large amounts of money being spent on elections. However, by bringing compulsory voting, mindless and extravagant expenditure on elections will not happen as the voter will anyway have to come to the polling booth and cast his or her franchise.
It is natural for many of you to ask- do things like Right to Reject and Compulsory votingviolate our Right to Expression? No, I would say it is adding completeness in the opportunity for expression. Right now, you are getting only half the right of expression- that of selecting the person or party. In future, you will get a complete right of expression- of even rejecting the candidates.
And it is not that something is being snatched from the voters. If compulsory schooling for children is advocated, can you say that we are denying a child his or her childhood?
Once someone asked Mahatma Gandhi what are the fundamental rights of the people? Gandhi ji said that it is not about the fundamental right but the fundamental duties of the people. When we do our duties properly, the rights will be automatically safeguarded and if we do our duties properly, our democracy will be safeguarded.
But friends, while it is good to talk about Right to Reject and Compulsory Voting, this debate will be meaningless if you are not registered as voters! I am told that a large number of youngsters who are 18 to 24 years old are not registered as voters. There is nothing more unfortunate than this. The Election Commission has started a special drive across all states for enlisting voters and I urge all of you to make use of the drive and get registered as voters. It is equally true that many of our NRI friends who retain their India passports do not know that they can vote in elections. Thus, I even urge my NRI friends to check the Election Commission website and get registered as voters.
Democracy can only be strengthened by all of us! As voters, we are the 'Bhagya Vidhatas' of our nation. What the Supreme Court said today is a wonderful step but it is now for us to come together, put it into practice and strengthen our democracy so that our nation can shine in the years to come!
Narendra Modi
RIGHT TO REJECT
SC Gives Voters Right To Reject All Candidates In Polls
The apex court directed the Election Commission to provide 'none of the above options' at the end of the list of candidates in electronic voting machines (EVMs) and ballot papers to allow voters to reject those contesting polls
A bench headed by Chief Justice P Sathasivam said that negative voting would foster purity and vibrancy of elections and ensure wide participation as people who are not satisfied with the candidates in the fray would also turn up to express their opinion rejecting contestants.
It said that the concept of negative voting would bring a systemic change in the election process as the political parties will be forced to project clean candidates in polls.
The bench noted that the concept of negative voting is prevalent in 13 countries and even in India, parliamentarians are given an option to press the button for abstaining while voting takes place in the House.
The court said right to reject candidates in elections is part of fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression given by the Constitution to Indian citizens.
It said that democracy is all about choice and significance of right of citizens to cast negative voting is massive.
With the concept of negative voting, the voters who are dissatisfied with the candidates in the fray would turn up in large number to express their opinion which would put unscrupulous elements and impersonators out of the polls, it said.
The bench, while reading out the operative portion of the judgement, did not throw light on a situation in case the votes cast under no option head outnumber the votes got by the candidates.
It said that secrecy of votes cast under the no option category must be maintained by the Election Commission.
The court passed the order on a PIL filed by an NGO, People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) which had submitted that voters be given the right to negative voting.
Agreeing with the NGO's plea, the bench passed the path- breaking verdict and introduced the concept of negative voting in the election process, saying that it would further empower the voters in exercising their franchise.
The latest verdict is part of series of judgements passed by the apex court on the election process.
Earlier, the apex court had restrained people in custody from contesting elections.
The apex court has also ruled that MPs and MLAs would stand disqualified after being convicted of serious crimes.
The government has brought an ordinance seeking to negate the court's judgement striking down a provision in the electoral law that protected convicted lawmakers from immediate disqualification.
A two-judge bench of the apex court had felt that the issue on negative voting needed to be adjudicated by a larger bench as there were certain doubts over the interpretation of the ruling passed by a Constitution Bench in the Kuldip Nayar Vs Union of India case relating to a voter's right.
Under the existing provisions of Section 49(O) of the Representation of People Act, a voter who after coming to a polling booth does not want to cast his vote, has to inform the presiding officer of his intention not to vote, who in turn would make an entry in the relevant rule book after taking the signature of the said elector.
According to the PUCL, Section 49(O) was violative of the constitutional provisions guaranteed under Article 19(1)(a) (Freedom of Speech and Expression) and Article 21 (Right to Liberty) and violated the concept of secret ballot.
With inputs from PTI
http://www.tehelka.com/righttoreject/
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