The two empty boxes can be filled with Participation and Peaceful Change of Government.

• Participation: Elections give every adult citizen an equal chance to take part in forming the government by casting a vote. Universal adult franchise ensures that rich or poor, every voter has one vote of equal value.
• Peaceful Change of Government: Elections allow power to be transferred from one government to another without violence. If people are unhappy, they can vote the ruling party out in the next election — change happens through the ballot, not conflict.

How the six values are ensured through elections:

Service voters are voters who, because of their service, are posted away from their home constituency. They include:

• Members of the Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force);
• Members of an Armed Police Force of a State serving outside that state;
• Government employees posted abroad (e.g., embassy staff);
• The spouse of such a person residing with them is also treated as a service voter.

All these service voters can use ETPBS — they receive the postal ballot electronically, print and mark it wherever they are posted, and return it by post, so distance never stops them from voting.

As per recent Election Commission of India notifications, there are:

• 6 National parties — AAP, BJP, BSP, CPI(M), INC and NPP;
• Around 57–60 recognised State parties (e.g., DMK, AIADMK, TMC, BJD, SP, RJD, JD(U), Shiv Sena, BRS); and
• More than 2,700 Registered Unrecognised Political Parties (RUPP).

The empty potholes can be filled with challenges such as:

• Money power — distribution of cash, gifts and liquor to influence voters;
• Muscle power — booth capturing and use of criminal elements;
• Appeals to caste and religion during campaigning;
• Low voter turnout / voter apathy, especially in urban areas;
• Paid news and biased media coverage.

How to overcome them:

• Strict enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct and expenditure limits; citizens can report violations instantly on the cVIGIL app;
• Use of EVMs with VVPAT, central observers and security forces to stop rigging and intimidation;
• Voter awareness campaigns (SVEEP) so citizens vote on issues, not inducements;
• Fact-checking units and media monitoring to curb fake news and misinformation;
• Active, vigilant participation by every voter — democracy is protected by its citizens.

Example: Suppose 4,000 valid votes are polled and 3 seats are to be filled.

• (a) People with Disabilities (PwDs): The Saksham App for easy registration and locating polling stations; ramps, wheelchairs and volunteer help at booths; Braille-enabled EVMs and Braille voter slips; and home voting for PwDs with a benchmark disability of 40% (extended nationwide in the 2024 General Elections).
• (b) Service Voters: The ETPBS (Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System) lets armed-forces personnel, state armed police serving outside their state, and officials posted abroad receive and cast their postal ballot electronically from anywhere.
• (c) Senior Citizens: Citizens 60 years and above get priority entry, seating, wheelchairs and volunteer assistance at polling stations; the elderly in the highest age bracket (85+ years, earlier 80+) can opt for voting from home through postal ballot, with the polling team visiting their residence.
• (d) Prisoners: Under Section 62(5) of the RPA 1951, a person confined in prison after conviction or in police custody cannot vote; however, prisoners are not barred from being on the electoral roll, and awareness drives help released persons re-enrol.
• (e) Persons in preventive detention: They retain the right to vote and can cast their vote through postal ballot.

Fig. 7.7 — EVM with Braille: technology-assisted inclusion (from textbook)

Fig. 7.8 — Voting from home for senior citizens (from textbook)

The Constitution (Articles 324–329) gives the ECI the superintendence, direction and control of elections. Its main functions are:

1. Electoral roll: Sends enumerators to every household, prepares booth-wise rolls, and conducts Special Intensive Revision so no eligible voter is left out and no ineligible name remains.
2. Election schedule: Activates the election machinery when the five-year term ends or the House is dissolved, keeping in mind weather, festivals, exams and the agricultural cycle.
3. Parties and symbols: Only ECI-registered parties may contest; the ECI classifies them as national/state/RUPP, insists on internal party elections, and settles symbol disputes.
4. Free and fair conduct: Deploys observers and security, monitors campaign expenditure, uses EVMs–VVPAT, and runs apps like cVIGIL, Suvidha, ERONET and Sugam.

Most important function — ensuring free and fair conduct of elections. Even if rolls are perfect and schedules are announced, elections lose their democratic value if voters are bribed, intimidated, or votes are miscounted. Fairness sustains public confidence in democracy itself; every other function (rolls, symbols, schedule) exists to serve this larger goal.

Yes, I agree. Reasons:

• People’s rule in practice: Democracy means rule by the people; elections are the mechanism through which the people actually choose who will govern them.
• Equality: Every adult citizen — rich or poor, of any caste, religion or gender — gets one vote of equal value.
• Accountability: Governments must return to the voters every five years; a non-performing government can be peacefully removed.
• Legitimacy: Only a government elected by the people has the moral authority to make decisions on their behalf.
• Choice: Multiple parties and candidates give citizens real alternatives of policies and leaders.

However, merely holding elections is not enough — they must be free, fair, inclusive and periodic. An election with only one party, or one marred by intimidation and fraud, is a body without a soul. So elections are the soul of democracy only when they are conducted honestly.

Meaning: SIR is an exercise conducted by the Election Commission in which the electoral rolls are intensively updated, verified and corrected, often through house-to-house checking by officials.

Objectives:

• To ensure no eligible citizen is left out of the roll — especially newly-turned-18 voters who may miss enrolment due to lack of awareness;
• To ensure no ineligible person remains on the roll;
• To delete names on account of death, change of residence, duplicate enrolment, or persons who are permanently untraceable;
• To give citizens time to raise claims and objections, which are settled before the final roll is published.

Necessity: The electoral roll is the foundation of every election — only those whose names appear on it can vote. An inaccurate roll can deny genuine voters their right or allow bogus voting, both of which damage the fairness of elections. A clean, updated roll therefore protects the principle of “one person, one vote” and keeps public trust in the electoral process intact.

(a) Initiatives taken by the ECI to enable voters:

• Online voter registration through the ECI portal (Ishani registered online at 18);
• Police security at the polling station for safe, fear-free voting;
• Wheelchair facility and volunteers to assist her disabled elder brother (PwD inclusion);
• VVPAT slip so she could verify her vote was recorded correctly;
• Home voting facility for her 89-year-old grandmother;
• Efficient booth management with a small trained polling team.

(b) Other valid document: Since Ishani forgot her Voter ID and Aadhaar, she must have carried one of the other ECI-approved photo identity documents, such as a passport, driving licence, PAN card, bank/post-office passbook with photograph, MGNREGA job card, pension document with photo, or a government service identity card. (Her name being on the electoral roll plus any one approved photo ID makes her eligible.)

(c) Violations of the Model Code of Conduct in the passage:

• Wall writing and posters pasted everywhere — defacement of public/private property is prohibited;
• Campaigning (pamphlets, slogans) on the day before polling — canvassing is banned during the 48-hour “silence period” before the close of polls.

(d) Suitable title: “Ishani’s First Vote — A Festival of Democracy” (or “No Voter Left Behind: My First Election”).

(e) How police and army personnel vote: Army personnel are service voters — they vote through postal ballots sent electronically via ETPBS. Police and other staff posted on election duty away from their booth vote through a postal ballot / Election Duty Certificate (EDC), which lets them vote at the station where they are on duty or by post.

(a) In a multi-party system (Country A), the right to vote is a real choice — voters can compare programmes of several parties, elect the one they prefer, and replace a non-performing government. In a single-party system (Country B), elections are held but voters have no genuine alternative; the same party wins regardless of the people’s opinion, so the voting right is merely a formality without accountability.

(b) I would like to stay in Country A. Although its standard of living is only average, it alone offers real democracy — periodic elections, genuine voting rights and a competitive party system. This gives citizens freedom of expression, a voice in government, and the power to change rulers peacefully. Prosperity without liberty (Country C) or elections without choice (Country B) cannot guarantee dignity, rights and accountability the way a functioning democracy can — and democratic accountability also creates pressure to improve living standards over time.

• Sheer scale and diversity: Over 96.8 crore voters (2024), thousands of polling stations and hundreds of parties across varied regions and socio-economic realities make conduct itself a massive task.
• Misinformation and fake news: False propaganda on social media can mislead voters and vitiate the level playing field.
• Intimidation and muscle power: Threats to voters, booth capturing and violence.
• Money power: Excessive spending, bribing voters with cash, gifts or liquor.
• Appeals to religion, caste and community — a corrupt practice under the RPA 1951.
• Voter apathy and accessibility difficulties for some groups.

How the ECI responds: Through the RPA 1950 and 1951, the Model Code of Conduct, EVMs with VVPAT, expenditure monitoring, observers and security deployment, apps like cVIGIL, and voters’ awareness campaigns. With constant vigilance and active citizen participation, elections become more representative and democracy more robust.

This is a creative activity. A simple plan for a 2-minute video on “My Vote My Nation”:

Balanced conclusion: Simultaneous elections can certainly improve efficiency and cut costs, but they must be designed carefully so that federal balance, voter choice and the ability to remove a failed government mid-term are not compromised. A phased approach with wide political consensus is the practical way forward.