The practice of village councils and unions declaring support to candidates for the state elections is on a rise with the approaching elections in 2018. What started as isolated cases is now being imitated in many assembly constituencies across Nagaland. It is a misconception that the village council still has overall authority over its citizens on whom to vote, though the interpretations based on customs and traditions may give some leeway. However with the various laws in force, such practices are purely arbitrary and misuse of power on the part of these institutions.
Article 326 along with the sixty-first amendment of the Constitution of India states and lays down the concept of universal adult suffrage in India that provides the right to vote to all citizens of over 18 years and above. The exception being disqualification under certain parts of the constitution or any law made by the appropriate Legislature on the ground of non residence, unsoundness of mind, crime or corrupt or illegal practice. The extension of this concept is again found in Section 62(1) of The Representation of the People Act, 1951; “No person who is not, and except as expressly provided by this Act, every person who is, for the time being entered in the electoral roll of by any constituency shall be entitled to vote in that constituency.”
The stand of the village councils and various village unions that have authority over the citizens often use Article 371(A) that give special provisions to Nagaland state, as the basis of their open endorsement to candidates during elections. However till date there have been neither discussion nor any resolution in the State Legislative Assembly regarding Article 326 and The Representation of the People Act, 1951. However unless there is a debate on this issue the concept of Universal Adult Suffrage in no way infringes on the four areas of special status provided in Article 371(A); religious or social practices, customary laws and procedures, justice system, and ownership of land and its resources. The simple reason being the elections to local bodies, the state legislature and the parliament is not a Naga customary practice. If the Naga traditional and customary bodies state that the Universal Adult Suffrage contravenes the Naga way of electing leaders then the debate will be whether Article 326 and The Representation of the People Act, 1951 be amended for the state. That would be going against one of the basic guiding principles of the world’s largest democracy as envisaged by its Constitution and clearly stated in the Preamble; a democratic republic.
On the other hand the village councils are statutory bodies under the government of Nagaland and it represent the government at the village level. In India the village is considered as the basic administrative unit and thus The Nagaland Village Council Act 1978 made the village councils an administrative extension of the government of Nagaland. Even though the members are elected/nominated according to customary practices, the village councils are constituted through the Act after final approval by the government. Thereby Section 14 of the Act empowers the village councils to administer justice and section 15(E) stipulates the villages council to enforce orders passed by competent authorities of the government. Therefore the village councils as an arm of the government openly supporting candidates and issuing diktats is in direct violation of the existing laws. Similarly other village institutions that have authority to exercise arbitrary powers over its members issuing declarations and diktats during elections are also violating the law.
If the NBCC Clean Election Campaign has to succeed then the government has to first issue directives against such practices by the villages councils. The government specifically the Home Department should immediately send out orders to all the 1400 plus villages in the state to immediately stop such illegal practices. The village councils on the other hand should be made to cascade the government order in the village level and as true arms of the government it should instead give its own orders to all its village related institutions with authority to shun from giving declarations and diktats. All the village institutions should be made to honour the right to vote of every individual so that ‘one man person one vote’ becomes a reality of in Nagaland.
