The ECI, a constitutional body under Article 324, is mandated to conduct elections “free and fair.” The Model Code of Conduct (MCC) a consensual, non-statutory code has become the ECI’s principal tool during the poll period.
Role of ECI in ensuring free & fair elections:
Plenary constitutional powers: Invokes Art. 324 to issue binding directions where statutes are silent and couples MCC with RPA, 1951. For e.g., s.123 corrupt practices are read together with s.125 hate speech provisions.
Level-playing field via the MCC:
- Bars use of government machinery, new policy announcements, and misuse of public funds.
- Post-Subramaniam Balaji (2013) case, ECI added manifesto guidelines to curb inducements.
Deterrence & field enforcement:
- Observers system such as randomisation of staff, transfers of partisan officials, CAPF deployment in sensitive booths.
- Expenditure monitoring: flying squads, static surveillance, “shadow registers”, seizure of cash/liquor/drugs, media certification & monitoring (MCMC) for paid news.
- EVM-VVPAT integrity: Through two-stage randomisation, mock polls, secure strong-rooms, VVPAT slips count as per ECI protocol.
Technology & citizen reporting:
- cVIGIL app for real-time MCC complaints with geo-tags and time-bound disposal; Suvidha for permissions; social-media advisories to platforms.
Criticisms around the MCC:
· Non-statutory nature: MCC is “guidance”, not law. Serious breaches must ride on IPC/RPA leading to trial timelines outlasting the 45-day electoral calendar.
- Limited disqualification powers: ECI cannot directly disqualify for MCC breaches; it can recommend action or register FIRs.
- Timing of the announcement: Announcements or disbursals close to polls such as Bihar’s MMRY cash grant before elections are cited as sops.
- Digital-era malpractices: Deepfakes, micro-targeted ads, encrypted channels outpace takedown cycles while cross-border servers complicate jurisdiction.
- Alleged inconsistency: Critics point to delayed action on hate speech or to asymmetry in campaign bans.
Reforms needed:
- Targeted statutory teeth: Give limited legal backing to key MCC clauses such as use of state resources, hate speech, and surrogate ads with fast-track special courts during polls.
- Pre-poll state-advertising curb: Implement Law Commission (2015) suggestion such as banning govt-funded ads for up to six months before House dissolution to blunt incumbency advantage.
- Digital enforcement 2.0: Mandatory trust & safety MoUs with platforms for verified deepfakes; watermarking of political AI content; independent ad libraries with spend/disclosure in real time.
- Money-power transparency: Mandate real-time donor disclosure, cap anonymous/cash donations, strengthen MCC manifesto costing with fiscal-risk flags.
- Institutional independence: Publish an MCC action dashboard which displays complaint-to-disposal timelines, bans, seizures etc for public audit.
- Clear freebies–welfare rubric: Adopt an objective checklist (universal vs targeted, budgeted, sunset clause, ex-ante fiscal note) to assess manifesto promises under MCC.
Conclusion:
Statutory backing, fast enforcement, digital preparedness, and finance transparency can help in preserving neutrality without chilling legitimate campaigning, keeping Indian elections both free and fair.
‘+1’ Value Addition:
- ADR v. Union of India (2024) struck down Electoral Bonds, noting distortion of the level playing field.
- ECI v. State of Tamil Nadu (1993): Supreme Court upheld that the ECI’s plenary powers under Article 324 are “unfettered” when existing laws are silent.
- During the 2014 and 2019 elections, the ECI flagged over 1,200 cases of paid news, using MCMC cells to ensure transparency in political advertising.
- The MCC originated from the 1960 Kerala Assembly election as a voluntary code adopted locally before becoming a national practice in 1962.
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