Decriminalisation of politics is an important step towards making the legislatures more accountable and trustworthy. Law makers cannot be law breakers. While the law (Section 8 of the Representation of Peoples Act) states that a candidate who is convicted of offence cannot be elected, the Election Commission wants that that any candidate who has a criminal chargesheet filed against him should be barred from contesting the elections if the offence for which he is charged is punishable with imprisonment for a term of five years or more. However, such a proposal is not favourable for many political parties as a number of their candidates may have charges against them. Instead there are proposals that only if the charges were framed within six months of poll should a candidate be barred from contesting elections. Decriminalising politics is a major issue specially as a number of candidates with criminal background may use their influence in turning the poll in their favour. Free and fair elections is the basic structure of the Constitution and the political parties should work with the Election Commission and the judiciary to ensure the same. Fielding candidates with a clear background leads to greater transparency and develops a sense of faith in the electorate. Preserving the sanctity of elections should therefore be of paramount importance for both the parties as well as the other constitutional bodies.
