Why does the Election Commission need seven phases to conduct general elections?
The 2024 Lok Sabha polls will be held from April 19 in seven phases across the country. In Bihar, West Bengal, and Uttar Pradesh, voting will take place in all the seven phases. Assembly elections will also be held simultaneously in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh. The last phase of voting will be on June 1 and counting will take place on June 4.\n\nThis parliamentary election will be the second longest polling exercise in India\u2019s electoral history. The longest one was the country\u2019s first general election, which was held over a five-month period from September 1951 to February 1952. But the 2004 Lok Sabha polls, for instance, were held in four phases \u2013 between April 20 and May 10 \u2013 they were over in 20 days. The 1998 elections took place in just three phases \u2013 on February 16, 22nd and 28th \u2013 over two weeks.\n\nSo what has changed between 1998 or 2004, and 2024 -- that we seem to have become so much slower?\n\nWhy does India need seven phases and one-and-a-half months to hold general elections? How do other big democracies like Indonesia manage it in one day? And what are the pros and cons of having a multi-phase election?\n\nTo discuss, we are joined by MG Devasahayam, a former IAS officer who is also Coordinator, Citizens Commission on Elections.