Two ideas are dominating the political discourse of recent times i.e. the absence of level playing field and the credentials of democratic institutions. Several of those raising these questions have been on the receiving end of the law because of their alleged corrupt activities. Since 2014, we have seen only one party rule the center (the BJP led NDA government) with the opposition failing to so much as to put up a fight. This tussle for power, a sine-qua-non of democracy, has been turned into fight for power between the party in power and, in present day scenario, a unified opposition. The opposition parties defend their losing streak by claiming that various democratic institutions and investigative agencies (like the ED, NIA) and various laws like the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) are being monopolized by the central government for their advantage while the center claiming that the oppositions are reaping what they themselves sowed while in power.
The opposition’s claim on the use of laws like PMLA and UAPA, that they are used to ensure the prolonged incarceration of politicians without trial, apparently bears a point as one can relate to the current situation of the Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and Jharkhand ex-CM Hemant Soren since even the Supreme Court of India has expressed its concern over the time of arrest of Kejriwal terming it as ‘bothering’ (the timing of the alleged case on him and the initiation of the proceedings against him), but let us not forget that some of the most stringent provisions of the PMLA act were made during the Congress- led UPA government (in Amendments made during 2009-2012, powers were granted to ED to take coercive action against politicians on their own judgment).

The opposition has also been advocating for the return of ballot box as the mode for elections. This fight was taken to the Supreme court by the opposition demanding 100% vitrification of EVM votes with the VVPAT slips just days before the general elections in India began.
To this the Apex Court held,” We are in our 60s and know what happened when there were ballot papers, you may have forgotten but we haven’t. As far as ballot box or ballot papers are concerned we all know it drawbacks”. To the people who have forgotten ballot paper snatching, booth capturing and even violence were not uncommon during elections, all this was carried out in the Congress led UPA government, more than a decade ago yet the opposition want a return for the old ways of election in this new and developed India.
The opposition is sceptical about this change because they believe that the EVMs can be manhandled and made to satisfy one side. This is a ridiculous argument because if one looks at the results of various elections held in various states, like in West Bengal, Karnataka, and Himachal Pradesh where the Congress came into power, how did they come into power if the result was suited for their loss?
EVMs have upheld the sanctity of election and are a reliable mode of elections not only in India but worldwide.

The opposition’s such ludicrous argumentson EVMs are also in line with its attitude towards the judiciary. They claim thatthere are some external forces in play in the working of the judiciary. While one can relate to the recent events of a former Calcutta High Court judge Shri Abhijeet Ganguly who has joined the BJP government in Calcutta but the former judge has himself admitted to the fact that the TMC government was pressuring him to give judgment in their favour and due to this pressure and the state government meddling in with the affairs of the court the former judge decided to quit and join the BJP government rooting for change from the current situation.

After 75 years of Independence we must be proud of the evolution in Indian democracy. The people of India know who they are voting and are confident of defeating any political party no matter how strong or popular their foothold is. The voters of India have in their capacity to think that which person or party is fit to lead this new India, which is at par in almost every aspect of the modern world. So all these efforts of the opposition to sway the agenda of the general election from development to these petty political topics is but all in vain. During the BJP led NDA government India has changed its image in almost every respect. Good-governance, remarkable delivery of welfare schemes and sound economic development have made India the fifth-largest economy. Security had been compromised which has been strengthened in this current government regime(the inclusion of Rafeal aircraft in the Indian Airforce and promotion to Made in India defense system are only some example to the vast list of achievements). Let us once again trust the people of India who should and will give a befitting reply to those who blame institutions and lack of level playing field for their losses.

Disclaimer:

This compilation of fact and evidences from various sources (Google, Newspaper, etc.) is done by Siddhant Upadhyay.
The views are personal and does not represent the views of Legal Ecosystem Envelopes (O.P.C.) Pvt. Ltd.( Updated as of 30th of April 2024)