Ajay K. Mehra 
Following a hard fought 2024 Lok Sabha elections, no single party could get a clear mandate. The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) did win a majority as a coalition to govern India for the next five years. The survival and longevity of the NDA government will be dependent on its two allies from Bihar and Andhra Pradesh, who in the past have changed sides without any qualms.
The BJP, expecting to storm back to power on the divinity claims of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, could muster only 240 seats and its challenger Congress won 99 seats. Their respective coalitions – NDA and INDIA–won 293 and 234 seats respectively.
The existing political situation provides a great opportunity to the INDIA alliance as well as the two major partners of the NDA–the TDP with 16 MPs and the JDU with 12 MPs–to lead the way for institutional restoration in the country. For the past one decade, institutions have been under severe stress and many have succumbed to the pressure and crumbled at the national and state levels.
Illustration: Pariplab Chakraborty
Restoring ECI’s independence
The process must begin from the Election Commission of India (ECI), which had to issue several denials regarding the charges of partisanship as the election process commenced. At the end, it attempted to reassure the nation saying ‘parinaam hi pramaan hai’ (the result is the proof).
But serious doubts have been raised on the neutrality of the body, especially after developments such as the BJP government changing the composition of the three-member selection committee for picking the members of the ECI. In 2023, the Narendra Modi-led BJP government in the Centre had changed the composition of the selection committee by bringing in a Union Cabinet Minister in place of the Chief Justice of India.
The manner in which the two members of the ECI were selected and appointed on March 14 this year, compelling the third member, the leader of the opposition Congress, to boycott, reflected the use of partisanship in the appointment. It was later alleged that the stretched election schedule worked out by the ECI was at the instruction of the government to facilitate campaigning for the BJP. The ECI also allegedly closed its eyes and ears to the violations of the Model Code of Conduct by none other than the Prime Minister. As the counting began on June 4, the Congress alleged that the ECI framed a new rule disallowing candidates’ counting agents at the Assistant Returning Officer’s table during counting.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh complained that Union Home Minister has reportedly called 150 District Magistrates as soon as the counting began. The CEC asked him to furnish proof. Nothing was heard about the matter since. The earlier selection process for the selection of the Election Commissioners must be restored.
The CEC and the two ECs are carefully selected former bureaucrats. Obviously, politicisation of the bureaucracy, though a much-discussed issue for decades, continues unabated. That the outgoing Union Home Minister can go over the state governments to connect directly with the DMs and issue instructions shows a steep decline. It needs a concerted effort from the opposition to correct the course.
Judiciary must apply self correction
During the past decade, the judiciary at every level has shown the tendency to swim with the political flow; lately reflected in the Delhi High Court asking citizens who had approached it to have faith in the EC. The citizens had knocked the doors of the court to complain that the EC was not acting on their complaint of violation of the Model Code of Conduct.
The rule of law and the due process have been the first victims of this trend. Indeed, the judiciary must apply self-correction forthwith. The High Courts and the Supreme Court of India, while respecting the constitutional mandate in their functioning, must not shy away from cautioning the executive through their judgments and suo motu interventions to follow the constitutional path. Only then the bizarre episodes of bulldozer justice as well as putting behind bars dissenters (as in Bhima Koregaon case) and political opponents under non-bailable laws such as the UAPA can be checked. The opposition will have to use the forum of the parliament and other democratic means to encourage the judiciary to reflect and correct the course.
This may beg the question that the presiding officers in the previous Lok Sabha (Speaker), even Rajya Sabha (the Vice President and ex-officio Chair), had crossed all the limits of partisanship. Even if the initiative still lies with the government, the opposition must reach out to the coalition partners to impress upon the government to restore the dignity of India’s vibrant representative democracy by ensuring institutionalised functioning of both the houses of parliament.
Whosoever is elected Speaker of the eighteenth Lok Sabha, must set an example in giving up the biases of party affiliation to restore the dignity which the first few incumbents of the chair had given it.
Misuse of security agencies
Fingers pointed at the Khaki in India have continued to be raised since independence. Studies have shown that the police did not come out with honours following the partition. Police reforms, an issue since the eve of independence, have not found a space in any manifesto in the current election. More than half the battle is won if the party in power does not misuse the police powers of the state, police organisations also retain their institutional status and function as per the law.
Since this has not happened, the opposition must use the opportunity to restore the constitutional mandate of the police in the states that they rule. This will give them the moral authority to question the Union government and other states as well. The beginning must be made by following the Supreme Court guidelines in the appointments and postings of the police.
To conclude, it is worthwhile to impress upon both the ruling coalition and the opposition to work out modalities to stop abuse of public agencies such as CBI, Income Tax, ED and others. The existing cases must be wound up forthwith, even if it means expediting the judicial process.
Ajay K Mehra is a political scientist. He was Atal Bihari Vajpayee Senior Fellow, Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi, 2019-21 and Principal, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Evening College, Delhi University (2018).
Read all of The Wire’s reporting on and analysis of the 2024 election results here.