Voting as an exercise by the citizens the nation should not only be considered as a right but also as a responsibility. It is one of the most significant rights of the citizens but is also as an act of taking responsibility for the general well-being of the society.
The direction to the political and social well-being of the nation is fundamentally decided by the act of voting by the citizenry itself. The idea behind making it mandatory does not arise out of the necessity of providing equity to the citizens of the nation rather it arises because the need of the hour is to find solutions to existing problems in Indian society.
The social issues like eradicating poverty, water management, and environmental protection are very poorly addressed and need urgent attention. Political issues like recognising certain indigenous tribes and maximising benefits to marginalised sections of society need to be addressed.
The issues of social equality on the basis of economic status is a very prevalent discussion nowadays, and it must be discussed in our country’s political corridors.
By the process of voting, voters also get to learn about persisting political issues in the country. These issues can be resolved in longer run only by making the voting process mandatory for each and every citizen of voting age .
Moving further, it is urgent that we elect representatives who are capable of resolving existing problems in our society, and this can’t be achieved unless and until the right to vote is exercised by every adult member of society.
Thus, making the voting mandatory will be a huge benefit to society, in general, and for our national wellbeing, in particular.
Being a democratic country, India should celebrate the voting exercise as a festival! How can we even think of a cohesive society where only a few take part in the most vibrant festival of our democracy. In the existing scenario, the voters who exercise their voting rights represent merely a segment of the total population. In order to make this democratic institution more inclusive, there are certain measures which should be introduced. For example, replacing the electronic voting machines with cellphone-based individual voting mechanism has been introduced in Australia. A new mechanism like this can certainly ensure the highest possible percentage of voter turnout during elections.
With the of introduction of NOTA (non of the above) as an option for the voters, more clarity about the political thought of the population came to the fore, and related issues are being addressed after that.
Making the voting exercise mandatory will certainly get more people involved in solving India’s social issues.