THAT the ongoing 2024 Lok Sabha elections will cost the country a mind-boggling Rs. 1.35 lakh crore as against Rs. 60,000 crore that the country paid for the 2019 elections, is certainly a disturbing reality of the price the country has to pay to keep democracy in the country not just intact but also thriving. The increase in election expenses by more than double the costs of the last polls should be a matter of concern not just for the Government but also for the people -- who are the ultimate payers of all that money. However, a saner approach to the issue may bring us to realise that certain expenses are unavoidable judged by various factors that include inflation plus added services the Government creates to ensure free and fair polls. These statistical details revealed by Mr. N. Bhaskara Rao, the Chairperson of the non-profit Centre for Media Studies certainly bring us to another realisation that every Indian person must work hard to ensure that the elections are used in the best possible manner to elect people’s representatives -- so that democracy thrives and delivers best results.

 

The CMS has been tracking election spending for the past 35 years, therefore, brings to fore a serious aspect of the festival of democracy -- increasing costs we must pay to keep the elections going in the healthiest manner. At the dawn of Independence, the story was altogether different. Elections, then, used to be a modest affair where money was spent with much care. Over time, the scenario changes in multiple ways. If the Government is needed to spend more money to organise the electoral machinery to a fine shape, the political parties also are expected to spend more money to ensure the victory of their respective candidates. This is, however, not just an Indian phenomenon, but also witnessed all over the world -- from the richest to the poorest countries. A detailed analysis may reveal to us that the wold keeps spending huge money to keep its electoral processes going smoothly. This is to suggest that when the world is taking a certain direction in its spending on and for elections, then India may not be an exception. Unnecessary expenses are to be discouraged so that the nation does not waste its money at wrong places. But, a close scrutiny of the overall electoral spending of India may reveal to the people that the whole exercise of management of elections may not have much scope to cut expenses. For, that may even mean cutting corners rather than cutting costs.

 

That is one thing no country can truly afford -- in real terms. Indian elections have been hailed by the world as a massive and successful exercise, given the scales on which every aspect has to be handled -- from the number of political parties to the number of candidates to the the increased costs of every merchandise, every service, every movement, every public exposure ...! This is in no way a justification of the expenses involved in conducting elections -- particularly the Lok Sabha elections -- in India. This is only an attempt to explain the legitimacy of such unavoidable or necessary exercise much needed in a democracy. Some restructuring of election expenses may still be done to reduce overall costs, all right. Yet, none of those exercises should affect the overall efficacy of Indian electoral systems that the world hails in glowing terms. It must be understood that lots of the expenses are incurred because of the massive scale of the event that spreads to every nook and corner of the country covering as many as 543 Lok Sabha constituencies. In the new times, what needs also to be understood that costs should not be the prime concern for holding national elections.