Many might be aware of what is going on in India right now. India is highlighted as one the worst affected countries by a coronavirus, and it’s not even something that can be hidden at this point. Every state and every city in the country has been noticing a rise in the number of cases, and the situation is just getting worst day by day. Amidst all of this, many may not have noticed something, and that being the elections that are going to take place soon in some places and some which are ongoing.
The same happened back in 2020 in the United States, elections took place, and a lot of concerns were raised, such as the posed health risk to the voters, unfair polling that may happen to lead to biased results, ultimately leading to an unfair election. Many more nations conducted elections amidst covid-19 promising various safety measures and everything one could think of, and Democratic elections have been recently going on around the world.
what the situation is and then plan out things well
The huge rallies that were taking place in Kolkata, West Bengal, India, are something that shouldn’t go unnoticed. The government had mentioned that all precautions were being taken while the rallies were conducted and that social distancing was maintained. But it is undeniably seen that was not the case. According to many reports from local people, the rallies included high marks crossed people who weren’t wearing a mask, the maximum limit of people allowed in the rallies, and not exaggerating. People were falling over each other, without any social distancing being maintained.
But the question that should arise is, are elections so important amidst covid-19? When the situation has been turning worse, cases are so high that people cannot get beds in the hospitals or even oxygen cylinders at home.
Understand democracy and elections
For bigger counties where democracy holds power, the government must be well aware that holding elections amidst covid-19 will bring out no good. Democratic elections require immense public interactions, the role of media, and mass communication, and all of this may not be feasible when things are turning to the worst, an example seen in Kolkata, West Bengal. Also, not to forget the fact that India has the largest number of electorates in the entire world and such a large population, posing an excessive disaster threat when the situation goes downhill.
When these concerns were raised, the government came out with what they may call “better solutions”. The increase in the number of polling booths and the decrease in the maximum number of people in a polling booth would help solve the problem? The other solution was the option of postal votes for people who can’t come to vote, such as aged people and the disabled.
But this poses another threat, which is an unfaithful election and biased results. Who would ensure that the results will be 100% fair and transparent?
And yes, the elections are being conducted.
Bottom Line
It’s inevitable that elections play such an important role and are necessary for the smooth functioning of a country. Still, many are questioning the point of risking the entire population for this. And many are concerned with what are they fighting against, is the covid-19 pandemic or is the elections at the moment.
