Srinagar, Sept 23: PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday warned that India could “resemble a banana republic” if electoral rolls continue to be altered according to the wishes of the ruling BJP, while praising two Election Commissioners for raising objections to decisions taken by the poll panel.
Speaking about reports that two Election Commissioners had raised objections on several occasions to decisions and positions taken by the Election Commission, Mufti said their dissent was important for the health of Indian democracy.
“Today they are trying to subvert the very fundamental of Indian democracy, which is the electoral process, by, you know, fudging the electoral rolls, which the two Election Commissioners have pointed out,” she said.
She said India and Pakistan, which she described as “sibling states”, appeared to be competing with each other in ways that harmed their own people and institutions.
“I feel that our both the sibling states, India and Pakistan, they are trying to undo each other, competing with each other — who can damage their people the most, who can damage their country the most,” Mufti said.
Referring to India’s description of itself as the world’s largest democracy, she said the country’s electoral process was central to that democratic identity.
“Our country India, which is seen as the largest democracy in the world and which our Prime Minister proudly talks about, ‘mother of democracy’, whenever he is abroad,” she said.
“But if it continues to be like this, you know, where electoral rolls — deletion and addition — happens at BJP’s will, then there are dangers that at some point of time our country, which is the largest democracy in the world, is going to resemble a banana republic.”
Mufti also contrasted the situation in India with developments in Pakistan, particularly the detention of the sisters of former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan.
“At the same time, look at Pakistan, which goes around the world as a peacemaker, as mediator of peace, is crushing dissent within its country with an iron hand,” she said.
“Look at — I mean, detaining Imran Khan’s sisters, who are unarmed, who are protesting very peacefully, them detaining just because they are trying to stand up for their brother. What does it speak?”
She said the detention of women protesters was at odds with Pakistan’s international image.
“You are going around the world as a peacemaker and, in your home, inside your house, women who have no weapons in their hands, you are detaining them,” she said.
Mufti said the “only silver lining” she could see was that India still had officials willing to question those in power.
“The only silver lining I can see is that in India we still have people like the two Election Commissioners who have the courage and integrity to question the people in power,” she said.
She contrasted this with Pakistan, saying there were no comparable voices within the establishment willing to question what she described as the “arbitrary detention” of Imran Khan’s sisters.
“It’s a very, very sorry state of affairs,” she said.
Mufti also referred to the deletion of voters from draft electoral rolls, saying the scale of the changes made the independence of Election Commission officials particularly important.
“If we do not have people like the two Election Commissioners, I don’t want to take their name at this point of time. I don’t know what trouble they are going to go through,” she said.
“They will be ED raids now, Income Tax raids now. What will happen to them?”
She concluded by reiterating her warning about the consequences of continued changes to electoral rolls.
“But if we continue like this, I mean, there will be a time when we are going to resemble a banana republic. There will be no democracy,” Mufti said.
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