On January 25, the eve of Republic Day, India celebrates its National Voters’ Day to mark the founding day of the Election Commission (EC) of India. The day holds significance in India as it is dedicated to raise awareness among the citizens of India on voter rights and duties.
The EC was formed on January 25 in 1950 but the first ever Voters’ Day was celebrated in 2011.
History
In a meeting chaired by the then Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in 2011, the Law Ministry’s proposal to observe January 25 as Voters’ Day was approved by the Union Cabinet. The main objective of Voters’ Day is to increase voter enrollment and encourage the youth of the nation to exercise their right and duty to vote.
Voters’ day is also the day to celebrate and uphold the Indian democracy.
Significance
The main purpose behind the day is to engage the younger generation which has crossed 18 but is reluctant to be a part of the nation building process. The engagement of youth was considerably low in beginning of the last decade than what it is now.
In order to inform the youth that it is their turn to be an active part of the electoral process and to get the eligible voters out of their homes so that they can exercise what is their basic right, the day was started.
National Voters Day 2022: Theme
Every year the celebration of this special occasion revolves around various dedicated themes. The theme for this year's National Voters' Day is 'Making Elections Inclusive, Accessible and Participative'.
This year ECI will have a bigger challenge ahead of the assembly elections in five states including the high profile Uttar Pradesh polls, owing to COVID-19 and Omicron fears.
Moreover, organizing elections in the biggest democracy of the world while keeping all health regulations in mind as first priority would definitely be a daunting task for ECI. However, with vaccination drives performing impressively well and youth becoming more vigilant and active, ECI's task looks tough but possible.
Voters' pledge
“We, the Citizens of India, having abiding faith in democracy, hereby pledge to uphold the democratic traditions of our country and the dignity of free, fair and peaceful elections, and to vote in every election fearlessly and without being influenced by considerations of religion, race, caste, community, language or any other inducement.”
