Law flouted on election expenditure

Of course, the political parties have evaded a moral and legal obligation for too long for anybody's comfort. They have not only failed to maintain their election budget within the ceiling as per the directives of the EC, they have shown reluctance in going through the standard procedure about furnishing statement to EC. For strange reasons, the political parties have even refused to register. This shows the political parties in this country have little regard for law and accountability. It is unfortunate indeed that being the bedrock of a democratic polity, they set such negative examples.

Reverting back to the role of the EC in clearing up the five-year old backlog, one is inclined to conclude that the office of the EC didn't even reprimand the political parties for their noncompliance. It even failed to make the lapse known to the public for the last five years, which in many ways could have worked to exert pressure on them.

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Now that the imperatives of bringing about reforms of the electoral law are being discussed by various quarters with due seriousness, what good one might expect from the prospective electoral reform if a single fundamental law in existence that seeks details of electoral expenditure couldn't be enforced. While the dialogue on reforms would aim for reaching a consensus on evolving a strong electoral law, the issue of enforcement by the EC or any other competent authority should also be addressed otherwise the law will be rendered meaningless.