Electoral Expenditure in Indian Democracy

Source-This post on Electoral Expenditure in Indian Democracy has been created based on the article “Unveiling the veil: expenditure disparities in India’s electoral system” published in “The Hindu” on 5 May 2024.

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Context-The article highlights the fundamental issue of electoral expenditure as a core concern for India’s democratic ethos. The BJP and Congress have collectively spent a huge amount, over ₹20 billion, during the 2019 general elections. This is despite the Representation of the People Act having fixed spending limits for individual candidates. Electoral Expenditure in Indian Democracy

What are the expenses of political parties for different purposes in Indian elections?

1) Media Advertising – Both national and state-level parties spent a lot of their “general party propaganda” budget on media advertisements. This is more than what they spent on rallies and other activities (Table 2).

2) Digital platforms- The study also examined the role of digital platforms like Google and Meta (formerly Facebook), where big spenders, primarily national parties, allocated disproportionately higher budgets for advertisements, while state parties had a negligible presence (Table 3).

3) The Role of Third-Party Campaigners– The article draws attention to the unregulated involvement of third-party or non-party campaigners, individuals or groups participating in campaign activities without being formally registered as political parties or candidates (Table

What are the ramifications of significant expenditure disparity among political parties?

1) Unequal Expenditure: Favoring Wealthy Parties– This big difference in expenditure highlights how the lack of spending limits favors wealthy political parties, tilting the competition in their favor.

2) Ensuring Fairness in Party Spending- This observation highlights the need to regulate overall party spending to ensure fair access to media platforms and a level playing field based on the strength of ideas rather than financial resources.

3) Unregulated Third-Party Spending -The unchecked spending and the content shared by third-party campaigners raises questions about transparency and responsibility (Table 4).
Without rules on how much third parties can spend, especially since the electoral bond scheme is scrapped, there’s a chance that untraceable money could get into elections and lead to secret agreements.

Read more- Electoral Bonds Scheme Verdict

 What should be the way forward?

1) Proposed Reforms – Election Commission has released a report titled ‘Proposed Electoral Reforms’ report in 2016.This advocated for the introduction of expenditure ceilings for political parties in India.

2) Learning from international practices-It recommends adopting ideas from countries like Australia and the UK, where third parties must register formally, disclose their spending, and follow different spending limits.

By adopting these steps, India can aim for global standards of fairness in elections, which would increase people’s trust and confidence in democracy.