New Delhi: A four-member US delegation led by Uzra Zeya, Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights called on the Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar and Election Commissioner Anup Chandra Pandey at Nirvachan Sadan here on Tuesday.
According to the release issued by the ECI as part of the ‘Summit for Democracy’, a decision has been taken to request India to lead the ‘Democracy Cohort on Election Integrity' and share its knowledge, technical expertise and experiences with other democracies of the world. ECI has been requested to also provide training and capacity building programmes to Election Management Bodies (EMBs) across the world and provide technical consultancy as per the needs of other EMBs.
During the meeting, CEC explained how ECI has not only been conducting free, fair, peaceful and credible elections but also making these inclusive and accessible. They shared the new initiatives taken by ECI such as the use of new information technology as a great enabler for not only voters at large but also for all stakeholders like political parties, candidates and other members of the society, making all election-related processes and voter services seamless, hassle-free and participative. CEC also spoke about recent best practices such as a postal ballot facility to senior citizens voters aged above 80 and persons with disabilities.
Appreciating the role of ECI in modernizing the election services and making the elections more inclusive and accessible, Ms Uzra said India can take a leading role in sharing its experiences and expertise in providing capacity building programmes to other EMBs to strengthen the election system. The Cohort led by India, New Zealand, Finland and the European Union have expressed interest to partner with each other and other interested democracies could also join in. Several programs for cooperation and sharing experiences for capacity building are on the anvil. Based on the above a specific strategy and Action Plan will be prepared in coordination with the Ministry of External Affairs.
The discussions were held in the backdrop of ‘Summit for Democracy’ which started as a two-day virtual event, hosted by the United States in December 2021 and is now a year-long activity with events and dialogues on themes related to democracy with participating countries. Leaders of more than 100 countries including India, civil society organizations, the private sector, media and others participated in the first summit.
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