MONEY, VIOLENCE AND MUSCLE POWER WILL RULE

Partisan local government polls are not necessarily a bad thing. However, in our context,we can't help but be cautious. WE have noticed that there was violence in every election held under political parties. In our country, the party that wins the election has all the power. It uses the administration, the law enforcement agencies, and the state machineries for its own political interest. And the party that loses gets nothing. So the competition among political contestants gets violent. Those who fail to get power take to the streets and get involved in violent politics as seen since 1991. But the local government elections, for example, the union parishad elections, were mostly violence-free. This was because the political parties were not directly involved in these elections. If political parties nominate candidates in local body elections, it is beyond any doubt that the elections will be a game of money and muscle power. There will be nomination trade. When someone will buy a party's nomination for, say, Tk 1 crore, he will try to win the election at any cost. Because it's an investment the candidate has made to get back, maybe, double the amount. Money, muscle power and violence become the main working force in such elections. 

Researchers have found that the 2014 national election was the bloodiest election since independence. A party that 'wins' such an election fails to consolidate its power and becomes vulnerable. The current ruling party has less influence at the grassroots level. So now they want to institutionalise "partycracy" in the local bodies through partisan elections. 

The 'bourgeois' political parties are not as organised or strong at the grassroots. When they are in power they get involved in corruption and when they are not in power they resort to violence. Now that the political parties will be involved in the local body elections, their activities at that level will increase. As Jamaat's registration as a political party has been cancelled by the High Court, candidates of Jamaat won't be able to participate in the local elections. And the BNP is now divided into many factions and is facing a leadership crisis. In this context, it will be easy for the ruling party to dominate at the grassroots level. 

The commentator is Professor, Department of Government and Politics, Jahangirnagar University.
Comment taken by Naznin Tithi.