Chandigarh: Launching a scathing attack on the BJP-led Centre, minister Aman Arora on Friday said that India’s electoral democracy is facing its “gravest institutional crisis” in decades, warning that the Election Commission of India (ECI) has been systematically stripped of its autonomy and the country is being pushed towards an “elected dictatorship.”Speaking in the Vidhan Sabha, Arora said the crisis was not about any individual Election Commissioner but was structural in nature. He pointed out that two Election Commissioners had raised objections about not being heard and their dissent being repeatedly ignored.Flagging lingering questions over EVMs and the functioning of the ECI, he said nationwide protests by youth reflected deepening public distrust in the electoral process.“The issue is not limited to Gyanesh Kumar. Tomorrow, whoever comes will have to function within the same system, because the strings are being pulled by those in power,” said Arora.He also referred to earlier political attempts to reshape the ECI, including the move from a single-member to a three-member Commission. Arora said institutions like the ECI must not only be independent but must also appear independent.
