Congress leader Jairam Ramesh.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh shared a post on X questioning the transparency of the Election Commission. He seriously accused the Electoral Commission of recently degrading the integrity of the electoral process. The commission failed to maintain transparency and openness, he said, adding that it also fostered corruption in the electoral process.
Jairam Ramesh in his post referred to the recent judgment of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The court has directed the Election Commission to share all necessary information with the public to maintain transparency. He said sharing information with the public not only restores trust but is also required by law.
Serious allegations against the Electoral Commission
However, Ramesh claimed that instead of following the court ruling, the Election Commission quickly changed the law to limit the scope of information sharing. He questioned the committee’s rush and asked why the Electoral Commission was so afraid of transparency?
This is the clearest evidence we have seen in recent times supporting our assertion that the integrity of the electoral process administered by the Election Commission of India is rapidly declining.
Transparency and openness are critical to exposing and eliminating corruption and unethical behavior. pic.twitter.com/DgIIWecgXZ
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) December 21, 2024
Prepare for legal challenges
Jairam Ramesh further said that this move by the committee will soon be challenged legally. He claimed that transparency and openness were crucial to strengthening democracy. This attitude of the Electoral Commission will weaken the democratic process.
The opposition has raised questions about the electoral commission’s operations. After Jairam Ramesh’s statement, the political debate intensified again. Opposition parties say the electoral commission has a responsibility to maintain transparency in the electoral process and any oversight could harm democracy.
What attitude will the Election Commission take?
At present, the Election Commission has not responded to this. But this article by Jairam Ramesh raises a big question about the transparency and accountability of the Commission. It will be interesting to see what action the Commission takes on this and how it faces legal challenges from the opposition.
