- Twin organisations to keep bad influences at bay during 2014 elections

MN Karn and (right) Jagdeep S Chhokar at the news meet in Patna on Monday. Picture by Ashok Sinha

Patna, Aug. 5: Association for Democratic Reforms and National Election Watch will jointly keep a tab during the 2014 Lok Sabha polls on the money spent by political parties and criminal influence.

Founder member of Association for Democratic Reforms Jagdeep S. Chhokar at a news meet held today at AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies said: “A 15-member committee (Bihar Election Watch) has been formed. The committee would ensure less use of money and influence of criminals in the coming elections.”

Chhokar added that meetings and seminars would be conducted in all the districts in Bihar. “This would also be done in educational institutions. Especially women and youths would be made aware that they should not vote for inefficient people,” he added.

Slogans like “Mera vote bikau nahi hai” would be used ahead of the elections for the people and by the people. “We would exert pressure on parties to allot tickets to deserving people,” Chhokar said.

Highlighting the importance of democracy Chhokar said it is a journey that continues. On the other hand, M.N. Karn, the former director of AN Sinha Institute of Social Studies said democratisation is the process and democracy is its outcome.

Today, the Bihar chapter of National Election Watch also made its strategy for the 2014 elections. The National Election Watch and the Association for Democratic Reforms released a report on how political parties do not follow their own guidelines mentioned in the manifesto. This, according to members of the two associations, is completely against the Constitution.

“There is no internal democracy among political parties. But it has been witnessed that in elections conducted between 2004 and 2009, a lot of bahubalis (henchmen) did not get tickets and many such people lost polls too,” Karn said.