Karan proposes new method of election

By C. ANAND REDDY

New Delhi

July 4: In tune with the long-pending and hotly-debated electoral reforms, RS member Karan Singh has, in his new book, proposed a new method of election for MPs and MLAs in order to make them "more representative" of the people.

In his latest work, I Believe: A Philosophy for the Global Society, Dr Singh has identified the "first past the post" system of election of a candidate as a "problem" of Indian politics. Vice-president Hamid Ansari on Friday released the slim volume, which is essentially an abridged version of Dr Singh’s own philosophy. Dr Singh said in his book, "...whoever wins a seat is usually supported by not more than 30 per cent of the electorate, and it is even possible to win with half that margin if there are a large number of parties and candidates contesting. In the result, hardly any member of Parliament or legislature actually enjoys majority support in their constituency."

Dr Singh suggested a way out for this, whereby "after each election, if no candidate has received more than 50 per cent of the votes, on the very next day a second election is held between the two leading candidates.