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A liberal move: on Rajasthan govt scrapping educational

criteria for local polls
currentaffairsfunda.com/2019/01/01/a-liberal-move-on-rajasthan-govt-scrapping-educational-criteria-for-local-polls/

By vis001 January 1, 2019

A liberal move: on Rajasthan govt scrapping educational criteria for local

polls

Rajasthan strikes a blow for democracy by removing educational criteria for

local polls
Among the first decisions taken by Ashok Gehlot’s government after assuming power(स ा
गहण करना) in Rajasthan was to scrap minimum educational requirements( आव यकताओं) for
candidates contesting local body elections. This is a progressive(पगितशील/बढ़ाव करनेवाला)
move and will restore(बहाल/वापस देना) the right to contest, at least in theory, to a large
section of the population in the State, where the literacy rate(सा रता दर,), according to the
2011 Census, was 52% for women and 79% for men. The previous government headed by
Vasundhara Raje had stipulated,(अनुब /िनधािरत ,) first through an ordinance in December
2014 and then through the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Act passed in 2015,
educational prerequisites( आव यक शत)ं to stand for local polls. It was made
mandatory(अिनवाय ) for candidates contesting for the post of sarpanch to have cleared
Class 8, and for those in the fray in zila parishad and panchayat samiti elections to have
passed Class 10. The move was ill-considered(अनु रदायी) from the very beginning(शु आत).
At the time, the amendment was seen as a bid by the then BJP government to lower the
average age of those in the fray based on the assumption(क पना/धारण) that its voters
tended to be younger. It was, however, an act of paternalism that militated(िवरोध करना)
against(िखलाफ) the basic assumptions of a liberal democracy(लोकतं / वरा य). It
penalised(जुरमाना करना/सज़ा देना) the people for failure to meet certain(िनि चत/कुछ) social
indicators(संकेतक,), when in fact it is the state’s responsibility(िज मेदारी) to provide the
infrastructure and incentives(पो साहन रािश) for school and adult education. And it
defeated(हारे हुए/परा त) the very purpose of the panchayati raj institutions, to include
citizens in multi-tier local governance from all sections of society. These requirements had
the effect of excluding(छोड़कर/के िबना) the marginalised(अिधकारहीन करना/िकनारे कर देना)

The Rajasthan government’s decision should also force a rethink in Haryana, where the
newly sworn-in BJP government had, also in 2015, legislated(कानून बनाना) a series of
eligibility(यो यता/यो यता) requirements for panchayat elections, including education levels
and a functional toilet in the candidate’s home. The Haryana Panchayati Raj (Amendment)
Act, 2015 was upheld that year by the Supreme Court in Rajbala v. State of Haryana. And
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the temptation (पलोभन)to expand educational eligibility requirements remains. Union
Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi, for instance, has previously
spoken of persuading( राजी करना/मनाना) other Chief Ministers to take the cue from
Rajasthan and Haryana, as an incentive for women to study. The decision of the new
Congress government in Rajasthan should force a recasting(बदल डालना/मर मत करना) of the
debate on finding ways and means by which elected bodies are made more
representative(पितिनिध). In a liberal democracy, governments must desist from putting bars
on who may contest, except in exceptional(असाधारण ) circumstances(पिरि थितयां), such as
when a candidate is in breach of particular laws. To mandate paternalistically(जनादेश का
पालन करे)ं what makes a person a ‘good’ candidate goes against the spirit of the
attempt(पयास) to deepen democracy by taking self-government to the grassroots.

Important Vocabulary

1. Progressive(पगितशील/बढ़ाव करनेवाला
Synonyms: continuous, dynamic, enlightened, forward-looking, gradual
Antonyms: intermittent, conservative, moderate

2. Prerequisites( आव यक शत)ं
Synonyms: essential, must, precondition, qualification, requirement
Antonyms: nonessential, extra, option

3. Militated(िवरोध करना)
Synonyms: count, militate, register, weigh, have effect
Antonyms: ignore, estimate, figure, guess, listen

4. Assumption(क पना/धारण)
Synonyms: acceptance, belief, expectation, guess, hunch
Antonyms: disbelief, fact, knowledge, measurement, proof

5.Exceptional(असाधारण
Synonyms: extraordinary, notable, noteworthy, odd, phenomenal
Antonyms: common, commonplace, familiar, inconsequential, insignificant

6. Eligibility(यो यता/यो यता)

Synonyms: qualification, ability, acceptability

7. Persuading( राजी करना/मनाना)

Synonyms: advise, assure, cajole, coax, enlist
Antonyms: discourage, dissuade, fail, halt, prevent

Credit To The Hindu News Paper

Among the first decisions taken by Ashok Gehlot’s government after assuming power in
Rajasthan was to scrap minimum educational requirements for candidates contesting local
body elections. This is a progressive move and will restore the right to contest, at least in
theory, to a large section of the population in the State, where the literacy rate, according to
the 2011 Census, was 52% for women and 79% for men. The previous government headed
by Vasundhara Raje had stipulated, first through an ordinance in December 2014 and then
through the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Act passed in 2015, educational
2/3
prerequisites to stand for local polls. It was made mandatory for candidates contesting for
the post of sarpanch to have cleared Class 8, and for those in the fray in zila parishad and
panchayat samiti elections to have passed Class 10. The move was ill-considered from the
very beginning. At the time, the amendment was seen as a bid by the then BJP government
to lower the average age of those in the fray based on the assumption that its voters
tended to be younger. It was, however, an act of paternalism that militated against the
basic assumptions of a liberal democracy. It penalised the people for failure to meet
certain social indicators, when in fact it is the state’s responsibility to provide the
infrastructure and incentives for school and adult education. And it defeated the very
purpose of the panchayati raj institutions, to include citizens in multi-tier local governance
from all sections of society. These requirements had the effect of excluding the
marginalised.

The Rajasthan government’s decision should also force a rethink in Haryana, where the
newly sworn-in BJP government had, also in 2015, legislated a series of eligibility
requirements for panchayat elections, including education levels and a functional toilet in
the candidate’s home. The Haryana Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Act, 2015 was upheld
that year by the Supreme Court in Rajbala v. State of Haryana. And the temptation to
expand educational eligibility requirements remains. Union Women and Child Development
Minister Maneka Gandhi, for instance, has previously spoken of persuading other Chief
Ministers to take the cue from Rajasthan and Haryana, as an incentive for women to study.
The decision of the new Congress government in Rajasthan should force a recasting of the
debate on finding ways and means by which elected bodies are made more representative.
In a liberal democracy, governments must desist from putting bars on who may contest,
except in exceptional circumstances, such as when a candidate is in breach of particular
laws. To mandate paternalistically what makes a person a ‘good’ candidate goes against
the spirit of the attempt to deepen democracy by taking self-government to the grassroots.

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