FIFTH GENERAL ELECTIONS TO

LOK SABHA IN ANDHRA PRADESH

 

V. LINGAMURTY

Principal, M. R. College, Vizianagaram

 

A General Election in a modern democracy is an event of great significance, for it gives an opportunity to the electorate to give its verdict on the conduct of the sitting members and to open its mind over the people’s basic requirements. A General Election is a barometer to measure the political maturity of the electorate and the strength of the political parties in the country and cuts each party to its proper size. The political landslides and surprises that occur at the time of elections cannot be attributed solely to the whipped up emotions of the electorate and strategy of leaders. As usual in such cases the victorious party paid high tribute to the sagacity of the electorate and the defeated parties stressed on the diabolic pressures to which the electorate succumbed. Mrs. Indira Gandhi observed that “the country’s verdict in the Lok Sabha mid-term poll was for her party’s socio-economic programmes” and that the nation has shown “a certain amount of involvement in the election.”1 Mr. C. Rajagopalachari, however, commented that the mid-term election was “unscrupulously hustled” and it is “only a by-product of the stinking permit-licence raj and the money power and unscrupulousness that have inundated over politics.” 2 In analyzing the behaviour of a vast electorate of 272 millions, it is not difficult to quote instances to justify one’s own conclusions. In all the states the most outstanding feature in the electoral behaviour is the sharp reaction of the electorate against the instability of the Government at the Centre which some unscrupulous party politicians tried to create by the intra-party struggle in the Congress. The Hindu in its editorial rightly observed that “in what was thought to be the most crucial election in two decades of the Republic, the people have returned a clear and unequivocal verdict. Mrs. Gandhi campaigned on the main plank of stability.” 3

 

One significant feature in the mid-term poll is the de-linking of Parliamentary and State Assembly elections with a view to give the electorate an opportunity to think of national issues as different from State issues. However, in three states–West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Orissa–elections were held simultaneously. For the first time since the attainment of Independence elections to the Lok Sabha were conducted separately. But undue significance need not be attached to this factor, for the simultaneous conduct of election to the Lok Sabha and to the State Assemblies in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Orissa did not alter the general pattern of voting in those states. It must be said to the credit of the electorate that “the people made it their election and it seemed as if the entire Indian people were fighting for the direction in which the country is to move.” 4 Incidentally, the mid-term election disproves the view that India has a “segmented political system, and political developments which occur in one segment do not affect developments in another.” 5 In a vast country like India diversity will always exist but this should not make us ignore the unity that exists in the national thought. The mid-term poll indicates beyond doubt that the electorate was fed up with the opportunistic united fronts and voted for a stable Government at the Centre. However, each State has its own problems which have their impact on electoral behaviour and such differences make an individual study of the mid-term election in Andhra Pradesh relevant.

 

Viewed from the point of representation in the Lok Sabha, Andhra Pradesh with a membership of 41, stands the fourth biggest State in India. Among the southern states, Andhra Pradesh tops the list in electoral strength. Out of 3,42,980 polling stations constituted to elect 518 members, in Andhra Pradesh alone 28,000 polling stations were established. The elections in A. P. cost about Rs. 1,07,49,500. India is described as the most populous democracy in the world with an electorate of about 27.26 crores and in Andhra Pradesh the strength of the electorate is 2.27 crores. In spite of the close up of the ranks of the opposition parties so as to create a straight fight with the Ruling Congress, the number of canditates that contested for the 41 seats was pretty high. 328 candidates originally filed their nominations and 6 of them were declared invalid. 115 candidates withdrew their nominations and 207 fought the electoral battle. There were no unopposed returns and every one of the 41 seats was contested. In a democracy the failure of sitting members, especially ex-ministers, is a sign of the unpopularity of the previous administration. In the mid-term election out of the seven ministers who stood for re-election, only one Deputy Minister who contested from Telangana was defeated.

 

Sophisticated studies on the voters turn out at the time of elections led writers like Mr. Myron Weiner to observe that states which have high voting turn out are also states which have high urbanization, literacy, circulation of newspapers and radio listening. Judged from these variables, the extent of political participation should have been low as Andhra Pradesh occupies the 7th or 8th rank among the states in India in matters like literacy, urbanization and newspaper circulation. As against the all-India average of 29.35 per cent, Andhra Pradesh has a literacy of 24.56 per cent only.6 Political participation of people in Andhra Pradesh, however, disproves the theory that there is relation between the variables cited above and the voter turn out at the time of elections. While 54.8 per cent on the average exercised their franchise in India, 59.05 per cent exercised their franchise in Andhra. Pradesh in the 1971 mid term elections. In all the five General Elections hitherto conducted, voter turn out in Andhra Pradesh has been consistently pretty high. No doubt, as in the case of all other states, in Andhra Pradesh also the percentage of voting in the Fifth General Elections has fallen. For example, in the 1967 elections 68.6% of the voters participated, while only 59.05% voted in 1971 in Andhra Pradesh. The corresponding all-India percentages are 61.32 per cent and 54.8 per cent. Another variable that can be taken into account for judging the political maturity of the electorate is the number of votes declared invalid. In Andhra Pradesh the total number of votes polled was 1,34,02,662 and only 3,47,012 votes were declared invalid. This indicates the understanding attained by the voters in the proper use of the ballot paper.

 

A general feature in the political life of all nations is that though women constitute nearly half of the total population of the country, their representation in the legislatures is very poor. Even in a developed nation like the U.S., there is only one woman in the Senate and 11 women are in the House of Representatives. In India while women form 49 per cent of the total population as well as the country’s electorate, women candidates for the Lok Sabha poll constitute an insignificant 3.2 per cent of the total number of contestants. Out of a total of 2,785 candidates only 80 are women.7 Out of the women candidates fielded by the political parties only 13 could come out victorious. In Andhra Pradesh 6 women candidates contested the elections and only 2 could succeed.

 

One marked development in Indian politics is the shift from personal to institutional power. “Among the institutionalized politics the bulk of the candidates who forfeited deposits were Independents, not party candidates.

 

Compared to many other developing nations India in virtually all of its states has a more institutionalized political process.” 8 It is significant to note that in A. P., out of the 94 candidates who contested as Indepedents 91 forfeited their deposits and only one candidate won in the election. The Independents secured 8.14 percentage of votes polled. Even that single candidate, Sri P. V. G. Raju (Rajah of Vizianagaram) was a member of the A. I. C. C. and openly announced his affiliation to the Ruling Congress which he has joined subsequently.

 

A statistical study of the election results indicates the reeling reverse faced by the parties which formed the U. D. F. and the large number of seats bagged by Ruling Congress which is disproportionate to the percentage of votes secured by it. 9

 

Party                Seats contested            Seats won        Percentage of votes polled

 

 

Ruling Congress                        37                         28                               55.60

Congress (0)                            12                          -                                   5.59

Jana Sangh                                 5                          -                                   1.53

Swatantra                                   9                          -                                   4.40

S. S. P.                                      2                          -                                   0.37

T. P. S.                                    14                        10                                14.43

C. P. I.                                     11                          1                                  6.00

C. P. M.                                     5                          1                                  2.83

Labour Party                              6                          -                                   0.37

Telangana Congress                    7                          -                                   0.38

Republican Party of India            4                          -                                   0.36          

Independents (Including the

Backward Classes

Mahasabha)                             95                          1                                  8.14          

 

Total                                        207                       41                                100.0

 

The disparity between the percentage of votes secured by a party and the number of seats in the legislature which it secured is found in all the states. This anomaly, it is felt by some political thinkers in India, can be checked by adopting the system of proportional representation.

 

The above cited data relating to the electoral fortunes of the parties throw light on certain aspects which are peculiar to Andhra Pradesh. The first aspect relates to the decline of the Communist party in Andhra Pradesh. Next to Bengal and Kerala, the Communist party has some measurable strength in Andhra Pradesh. But the recent elections have revealed the waning power of the Communist party in Andhra Pradesh.

 

Party                Total votes polled in 1967                     Total votes polled in 1971

 

C. P. I.                         1,551,223, (11.4% of                           7,76,019 (6% of votes

votes polled)                                         polled) 

C.P.M.                         1,003,485 (7.4% of                              8,68,677 (2.38% of votes

votes polled)                                         polled)

 

Second aspect worthy of note is the role of rural leadership. The ecology of Andhra Pradesh indicates that rural life and agrarian economy are the determining factors in the elections. With the introduction of Panchayat Raj the party which controlled the rural administration could play a vital role in determining the electoral result. In Andhra Pradesh “The Congress generally mobilised its voters through the Panchayat Raj chiefs instead of directly approaching the voters through public meetings. Each Samithi President had influence over 40 or 50 Village Panchayat Presidents who in turn had under them about 600 to 800 voters.” 10

 

The third aspect relates to the role of caste in Andhra politics. Morris Jones remarked, “the Central discovery is that politics is more important to castes and castes are more important in politics than even before.” 11 As caste is an age-long institution, its place in the life of people cannot be ignored. There is some truth in the remark that “behind the formal lists of party candidates nominated for  the contests, there is probably an inside story of careful calculation in terms of caste appeal.” 12 In Rayalaseema, euphemistically called “Reddiseema” all the four candidates that won the election belong to the Reddi community. In regard to caste as a political force two observations become relevant. Firstly, behind caste is the economic factor. The Kammas and Reddis own vast landed properties and thereby possess great control over the rural folk. It is their economic power rather than caste affiliation that is largely responsible for their dominance in politics. Secondly, there are several instances to show that the electorate voted irrespective of caste. For example, Sri K. L. Rao, Sri P. V. G. Raju and Sri M. T. Raju were not voted on considerations of caste. The electorate has not been swayed by caste fanaticism in the case of persons of proved merit and integrity.

 

The fourth aspect which makes the mid-term poll in A. P. most significant is the Telangana vote. In the general elections of 1967 the Congress under the leadership of Sri K. Brahmananda Reddi won 35 of the 41 seats. But the agitation for a separate Telangana State has shaken his leadership in Telangana as can be noticed from region-wise success of the parties given below:

 

Party                Coastal Andhra            Rayalaseema                Telangana         Total

Congress (R)                            22                             3                                3                 28     

T. P. S.                                     -                                -                                10               10

C. P. I.                                      -                                1                                -                   1

C. P. M.                                    -                                -                                 -                   1

Independents                             1                               -                                 -                   1

 

                                                                                                                                      41     

 

On the basis of the electoral result members of the Telangana Praja Samithi argue that the vast majority of people in that region have voted for a separate Telangana State. The voting pattern in Telangana, as can be noticed from the following data, was quite in favour of the separatists. 13

 

Party                            No. of votes polled                               Percentage of votes polled

Congress (R)                       12,83,491                                                       31.6

T. P. S.                                18,73,589                                                       46.3

C. P. I.                                  1,57,893                                                         3.9

J. S.                                         54,630                                                         1.3

S. S. P.                                    40,853                                                         1.0

Telangana Congress                  43,748                                                         1.1

 

Out of the total electorate of 74,46,988, the votes polled numbered 40,47,107. That is, some 54.4 per cent of the electors exercised their franchise. Commenting on the election result the executive of the A. I. C. C. (R) congratulated the people of Telangana on having pricked the bubble of separation and on standing by the forces of integration and progress. This interpretation is based on two considerations: (1) 46 per cent of the electorate did not vote and thereby they silently supported the integrationists. From this line of argument the conclusion is drawn that the T. P. S. votes were only just over 25 per cent of the electorate. (2) Even in certain constituencies where the T. P. S. won, it secured only a small majority. In the ten constituencies in which the T. P. S. won, in two constituencies only it secured a decisive victory as shown below:

 

Close contest

Margin of                     25,000 votes                            3 constituencies

Fair contest                  25,000-75,000                         5 constituencies

Remote contest             75,000 +                                  2 constituencies

 

This line of argument hardly breaks any ice. No party under the present system of voting can secure absolute majority of the total electoral vote. Further, besides the votes secured by the T.P.S. the votes of the other parties that supported the separatist movement should also be taken into account. In such a case it has to be said that 54.7 per cent of the polled votes had been secured by the separatists. “The Chief Minister himself recently acknowledged the strength of separatist sentiment by presenting a separate budget for Telangana.” 14

 

The mind of the electorate cannot be correctly understood by making an arithmetical approach to election results. The spirit of the electoral verdict and the conditions under which the verdict was given have to be closely studied. A party which fights the election on an emotional issue will always sweep the polls. The party’s success is the result of public emotion and not public opinion. The emotions of the people of Telangana have been whipped, up in favour of a separate Telangana State by a few leaders whose personal animosity against the Chief Minister are quite well-known. What the people of Telangana really require is economic progress. If programmes for its economic development are vigorously implemented the separatist agitation will subside. Further, steps may be taken to ensure regional autonomy and to give effective representation to Telangana on the Cabinet.

 

In a big State like A. P., with a population of 43,394,951 having diverse interests, tensions in one region or other may exist and some regional groups may make capital out of such emotional tensions. A party whose strength depends on an emotional issue cannot survive for long. On a sober consideration it can be said that the position of the Ruling Congress party in Andhra Pradesh is quite safe. The programmes for the large-scale industrialisation the State has made the Congress party (R) quite popular. The opposition parties have neither an appealing alternative programme nor party cadre to establish mass contact. Whatever may his foibles Mr. K. Brahmanada Reddi’s leadership is by and large appreciated by the people. He is held as “right-to-the-centre man.” By his opposition to the reduction of the size of land ceilings he is held by land owners as the protector of their interests. Ever since the inception of Andhra as a separate State, the Congress party alone has been in power without a break. So it could strongly consolidate its position in the State and there is no likelihood of the Congress party (R) being toppled down in the foreseeable future.

 

1 Indian Express, March 12, ’71

2 Indian Express, March 13, ’71

3 The Hindu, March 12, ’71

4 Dr. A. Appadorai: “The mid-term poll and after.” Eastern Economist. April 9, 1971.

5 Myron Weiner: State Politics in India.

6 Indian Express, April 15, 1971

7 The Hindu, February 21, 1971

8 Myron Weiner: State Politics in India

9 Indian Express, March 14, 1971

10 The Hindu, February 24, 1971

11 The Government and Politics of India, p. 65

12 Ibid. p. 66

13 Indian Express, March 13, ’71

14 “The Road to Telangana,” The Statesman. March 24, 1971

 

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