Bihar Legislative assembly elections 2020 in Pandemic Coronavirus

July 9, 2020July 9, 2020 Abhi

While talking to a news channel, Election commission has emphasized on conducting the Bihar Legislative assembly elections 2020 according to the release schedule. Is it even possible to conduct elections in the current situation- let’s have a look?

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Bihar Legislative Assembly elections 2020

Bihar assembly elections ( Bihar Vidhan Sabha chunav ) are scheduled to be conducted in October and November in 2020, as announced by the Election Commission earlier.

This will mark the completion of the tenure of 22nd Chief Minister of Bihar – Nitish Kumar. The upcoming election will decide if he will retain his position or someone from opposition will get a chance to serve the state.

Bihar assembly elections 2020 and Coronavirus

According to the guidelines, the tenure of the current state government ends in 2020, and in general, fresh elections should be conducted. But the current year 2020 has not been a normal year.

The spread of pandemic coronavirus has gripped the whole world. Even after three consecutive lockdowns, governments ( both central and state ) decided to move on to the unlocking phase. But the situation is getting worse.

The only way to keep one safe is to follow social distancing, which doesn’t seem possible in an election booth where there is a long queue waiting for their chance to cast their vote.

Lockdown Extension in Patna from 10th July 2020 to 16th July 2020

Till writing this article, the number of coronavirus cases recorded in Bihar is over 13,274. The state recorded a massive 749 cases in a single day.

Due to this sudden jump in cases, Patna’s district magistrate has decided to enforce the extension of lockdown once again in Patna for a week, i.e., from 10th July 2020 to 16th July 2020.

Read – Patna Lockdown from 10th July to 16th July Circular

If we even consider this, the decision to conduct the Bihar legislative Assembly Elections 2020 doesn’t seem Logical. If there is such an emergency situation, conducting an election will pose a humongous threat of Coronavirus’s spread on so many people that we cannot even think of.

Will people even come out to vote in this coronavirus situation.

Should this even be a question? Yes, voting is everyone’s right, which must be exercised in any condition. But why to pose them all in a life and death condition in this pandemic condition. There can only be two cases-

Case 1.) If people come out to cast their vote if there is an election ( and everyone must vote).

It can be dangerous in this current situation. Thousands and thousands of people may get infected with Coronavirus. This sudden spike in the number of cases can create an uncontrollable situation where there is a lack of standard medical facilities concerning the dense population of Bihar.

Case 2.) If people decide to participate partially or not to participate in the election.

This will also not be an ideal condition as people will not get the right opportunity to choose their desired candidate. The state already witnesses less voting percentage, and the current fear will lessen the numbers even more.

This will surely not be a good move in building a robust political framework of the state.

How can we tackle the current situation and Bihar legislative assembly elections

Just ranting and not thinking of any solution is also not right. Although the situation seems very odd, there is the right solution to this situation as well.

Yes, after the completion of the tenure of a government, the ruling party has no right to be in power. According to Article-356 of the Indian constitution, if the president thinks ( according to the report of the governor ) that the state is unable to exercise its duties due to any unavoidable condition, he can impose the president’s rule in that state.

The current pandemic situation of Coronavirus comes under that definition too. Governor Rule in Bihar is a perfect solution in this situation where the state can delay the elections and function normally.

The situation can be analyzed for 6 months, and if the situation gets better, the election commission could conduct the election in a much fear-free environment. If the condition doesn’t get better, Governor rule can be extended for the next 6 months.

Conclusion

Questioning the election commission is not the sheer motive of this article, but people’s life is. When the district magistrate has decided to extend the lockdown, this itself proves how critical the situation of the state is.

On the other hand, people in Bihar are not that literate and aware of exercising full precautions while casting a vote and gathering at a place. The current exponential growth in the number of corona cases is a live example of this.

The best thing will be to delay the Bihar state assembly elections until there is any improvement to the current pandemic situation.

Do you think that conducting an election in such a condition is logical at all? Please share your views and let us know in the comments section below.