INDELIBLE AND MOMENTOUS ROLE OF THE JUDICIARY IN ELECTORAL REFORMS

Abstract

Any democracy that believes in people and their political rights should be protected from structural flaws by ascending to free and fair means of elections which is the pivot for the success of democracy. To make fair elections free of flaws, it is essential to reform the electoral system occasionally. This article provides a comprehensive analysis of the critical role that the judiciary is playing in the ongoing discourse of democracy and multiple issues plaguing the way of free, fair and impartial elections. This article tries to evaluate the array of nefarious activities such as misuse of money and muscle power, corruption, violence, siphoning off funds, etc., advancing towards elections which hampers a very notion of free and fair elections, making the election a mockery in democracy and its legal repercussions. It tries to explore various mechanisms and tools that the judiciary employs to ensure the integrity of the electoral process. It tries to elucidate how far the judiciary effectively addresses the challenges posed by the fast-paced nature of social media and arguments put forth by the technology strictly adhering to its independence. This article endeavour to qualitatively study a brief overview of the body governing the elections and the steps taken by the judiciary in addressing the glitch in the criminal justice system which undermines the credibility of the electoral process and weakens public confidence.