The document discusses key issues regarding electoral bonds, media neutrality, and parliamentary efficiency in India, highlighting concerns over corruption, biased media coverage, and inefficiencies in legislative processes. It also critiques the Citizenship Amendment Act and the One Nation-One Election policy for promoting division and centralizing power, respectively. The speaker emphasizes the need for unity and reform to enhance democracy and ensure equitable governance.
The document discusses key issues regarding electoral bonds, media neutrality, and parliamentary efficiency in India, highlighting concerns over corruption, biased media coverage, and inefficiencies in legislative processes. It also critiques the Citizenship Amendment Act and the One Nation-One Election policy for promoting division and centralizing power, respectively. The speaker emphasizes the need for unity and reform to enhance democracy and ensure equitable governance.
The document discusses key issues regarding electoral bonds, media neutrality, and parliamentary efficiency in India, highlighting concerns over corruption, biased media coverage, and inefficiencies in legislative processes. It also critiques the Citizenship Amendment Act and the One Nation-One Election policy for promoting division and centralizing power, respectively. The speaker emphasizes the need for unity and reform to enhance democracy and ensure equitable governance.
The document discusses key issues regarding electoral bonds, media neutrality, and parliamentary efficiency in India, highlighting concerns over corruption, biased media coverage, and inefficiencies in legislative processes. It also critiques the Citizenship Amendment Act and the One Nation-One Election policy for promoting division and centralizing power, respectively. The speaker emphasizes the need for unity and reform to enhance democracy and ensure equitable governance.
AGENDA 1: REIMAGINING DEMOCRACY: ADDRESSING ELECTORAL BONDS, MEDIA
NEUTRALITY AND PARLIAMENTARY EFFICIENCY.
AGENDA 2:UNITY AND REFORM: NAVIGATING CAA (CITIZENSHIP AMENDMENT ACT) AND ONE NATION-ONE ELECTION POLICY.
1.“Electoral bonds are a way to legalize corruption. They allow anonymity, leading to unchecked and unaccounted money in elections.”
Electoral Bonds were a mode of funding for political parties in India from their introduction in 2017 by Narendra Modi until they were struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court on 15 February 2024.The name and other information of the donor are not entered on the instrument and thus electoral bonds are said to be anonymous. However, the electoral bonds scheme has been found to violate the constitutional right to freedom of speech and expression as well as the right to information of the citizens by allowing for anonymous donations that obscure the true sources of political contributions which disproportionately benefits the ruling party.
“Whoever controls the media, controls the mind.”
Media neutrality refers to the unbiased and impartial reporting of news, ensuring that all sides of a story are presented fairly without being biased. It is crucial for a healthy democracy that media channels operate independently, without political interference. However, the ruling party’s influence over media outlets (like India Today, Aaj Tak, etc.) raises concerns about the neutrality of news coverage, as reports often seem to favor their agenda rather than providing balanced information. This undermines the media neutrality and compromises the public’s right to unbiased information.
“Efficiency in parliament is the art of turning debate into action.”
Parliamentary efficiency refers to the ability of a legislative body to make decisions and enact laws in a timely and effective manner.The efficiency of parliamentarians is crucial for the effective functioning of a democratic system but the ruling party’s handling of parliamentary procedures often delays crucial legislation, resulting in inefficiencies that hinder timely policy implementation and fail to address pressing issues effectively.
2.“The CAA-NRC combine is an attempt to divide the country and create an atmosphere of fear. We must stand united against such divisive policies.”
The Citizenship Amendment Act,2019, amends the Citizenship Act,1995, and makes it easier for non-Muslim minorities(Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists,Jains,Parsis and Christians) from Afghanistan,Bangladesh and Pakistan who entered India before December 31,2014 to obtain Indian citizenship in about 5 years.However, Muslim victims of religious persecution in Pakistan, Afghanistan or other neighbouring nations will need to wait for 11 years before they become eligible for Indian citizenship.This shows how biased the ruling party is towards the specific above-mentioned religions (excluding the Muslim Community).
“The One Nation,One Election policy is an attempt to centralize power.It undermines the federal structure of our constitution.”
This policy suggests holding simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and all state legislative assemblies along with local body elections every five years. This policy may save cost and time but it undermines the federal structure of India by centralizing power.We also believe that simultaneous elections could dilute the democratic process by focusing more on national issues and personalities, overshadowing regional concerns and local governance matters. Also, the timing of the proposal to hold the elections might be strategically aligned with favorable conditions for the ruling party, which could enhance its chance of maintaining power both at the national and state levels.
With this I conclude, it is not my intention to pick holes in what one side or the other side does. I hope that each member support what is right for the Nation. I promise to extend my full support and active participation in this endeavour. Ending with the quote that “Reimagining democracy requires unity in vision and a collective commitment to reforming our institutions for a more equitable future.”
