Shortcomings of Indian Electoral System: There are certain shortcomings of an electoral system. Some notable weaknesses are discussed below :

1. Money Power: The role of unaccounted money in elections has become a serious problem. The political parties collect funds from companies and business houses, and then use this money to influence the voter to vote in their favour.

2. Muscle Power: At several places criminals use to support the candidates by intimidating the voter at a gunpoint to vote according to their directions. Some criminals have come themselves openly to contest elections. As a result violence and criminalisation of politics in India is increasing day by day.

3. Castes Role: Generally the candidates are given tickets by the political parties on the consideration whether the candidate can muster the support of numerically larger castes. Even the electorates vote on the caste lines.

4. Religion or minority base: Some political parties are still using the British policy "Divide and Rule" on the basis of region. They give their parties tickets to such communal leaders, who are possessing enough resources and having enough following among their own community. Even the electorates are being befooled on communal lines even after 61 years of freedom. Communal loyalties of the voters are used at the time of propaganda campaign.

opportunities in respect of access to resources. The party in power is always in an advantageous position then the opposition parties. There is widespread allegations that party in power accomplishes misuse of government machinery.

5. Misuse of government machinery: All the political parties of India do not have equal Conclusion: All above mentioned shortcomings lead to election violence, booth capturing, rigging bogus voting forcible removal of ballot papers, ballot boxes EVMs or loot of the vehicles, etc. which result into loss of public faith in elections.

Q.5. Discuss what reforms have done and you think should be done for improving the electoral system in an country (or in India).

Ans. Undertaken and Suggested Electoral Reforms:

1. In order to restore the confidence of the public in the democratic electoral system, many electoral reforms have been recommended from time to time by Tarkunde Committee and Goswami Committee which were particularly appointed to study and report on the scheme for Electoral Reforms in the year 1974 and 1990 respectively.

2. Out of recommendations given by different committees some reforms have been implemented. In fact, it was under the chairmanship of the then Chief Election Commissioner, T. N. Seshan by that Election Commission initiated many more measures to ensure free and fair elections. Some of the reforms which have been implemented so far are as follows:

(a) The voting age has been lowered from 21 years to 18 years. This had helped increase the number of voters and response confidence in the youth of the country.

(b) Another landmark change has been the increase in the amount of security deposit by the candidates to prevent many nonsense candidates from contesting elections with an ulterior motive.

(c) The photo identity cards have been introduced to eradicate bogus voting of impersonation.

(d) With the introduction of Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) the voting capturing, rigging and bogus voting may not be possible.

(e) The use of EVM will in the long run result in reducing the cost of holding elections and also the incidence of tampering during countings of votes.

(f) If a discrepancy is found between the numbers of votes polled and number of total votes counted the Returning Officer always reports the matter forthwith to Election Commission.

Election Commission on such report may either declare the poll at the particular polling station as violet and give a date for fresh poll or countermand election in that constituency.