Enforcing respect for the law in Bihar

by Prabodh Saxena

THE Election Commission needs to be commended for two fair and peaceful rounds
of polling in Bihar. The human life saved is itself a singular feat as scores of people
used to get killed in any election in Bihar. Having been an observer for the first
phase, I have an idea of the ground truth and the magnitude of the effort, planning
and above all determination that has gone into making things work.

A fearless ballot was made possible under a general fear of the bullet. I have
returned satisfied but carry a deep concern. We are now operating in a system where
“mistrust” and “lack of confidence” in the local apparatus has become the sine qua
non of a fair and peaceful electoral process.

In Bihar the credibility question is not just restricted to the Election Commission or
the media. More than outsiders, it is the natives who have neither regard for nor fear
of the “authority”.

The Central Paramilitary Force (CPMF) guarded about 65% of booths in the assembly
constituency I was observing. On such booths everyone stood in a queue without
asking and moved away after voting to a considerable distance causing no
interference.

What about other booths, however? During my visit to one such booth in an interior
location, not classified as sensitive, I was taken aback by the scene. The booth had
deployed four armed personnel, two from Bihar Police and two from Home Guards.
There was total commotion at the booth. No one was prepared to stand in queue and
the ladies, less than a hundred, had thronged the table of the Polling Party each
demanding an early slip for the vote.

All those who had already voted were still hanging around at the gate. The Polling
Party was obviously harassed and though not many voters were actually left for
polling, confusion and indiscipline had taken over the normal process. I demanded
from the force deployed to bring order, make the ladies stand in a queue and ask all
those who had voted to move away from the premises. Their efforts were without
results. Some people did move away but the ladies were still resistant

Finally I had to call my escort personnel to do the needful. I decided to be there for
about 15 minutes for things to settle down and asked the armed personnel for an
explanation. Their reply was that “the local people do not listen to us.” My PSO
confirmed the general perception about the loss of command of the local police. I
was appalled that the authorities had lost the ability and confidence to even
command compliance of law. One can imagine the morale of such a uniformed force
and their efficacy in meeting a law and order situation.

What the Commission has done is absolutely necessary and there is no other
possible solution but should we not think beyond it? This is certainly not the last
election. What will happen when the elections in Bihar are held with general elections
all over the country and CPMF availability is minimal? Alternatively, if separate
elections are planned to ensure maximum CPMF presence, they will be in a number
of phases spread over months and at an enormous costs, grinding all development
and governance process. The bigger concern is that with time even the CPMF will
lose it’s sheen as familiarity breeds contempt and constant public interface erodes
the sharpness of law enforcement agencies. Unfortunately the malady is just not in
Bihar as a similar situation prevails in many other pockets of the country. If we do
not address and resolve these issues, the rule of law will begin with election
notification and end with it.

The author, Secretary (Home and Vigilance) in the Government of Himachal

Pradesh, was in Bihar during the first phase of the poll as Election Observ

16 November 2005