Remembering T N Seshan on his first Punyatithi - 10th November 2020.

 Remembering T N Seshan on his first Punyatithi - 10th November 2020.

Tirunellai Narayana Iyer Seshan, popularly known as T. N. Seshan, is remembered as an extraordinary architect of the modern day Election Commission of India and he will ever be remembered for brining in revolutionary changes to the electoral systems and for making the Election Commission of India one of the highly respected institutions of not just India but globally. It was on this date last year - 10th November 2019, that Seshan breathed his last in his Chennai home. Today -10th November 2020, is his first punyatithi and this day is also celebrated as the World Science Day and we are celebrating this day by opening our science centre to the public. Incidentally due to the global Covid pandemic our science centre and so also most other museums and science centres across India have remained closed to the public for nearly 8 months. It is therefore an honour for us that on the occasion of the first punyatithi of Seshan, we are opening our science centre to the public. 

One of the monumental foundations under which our cherished country was built is its democracy and Seshan has strengthened and cemented the foundation of the Indian democracy by empowering the Election Commission of India with those mandated powers, which are feared, respected and appreciated by the Indian electorates including the political parties. The Indian elections and the manner in which these elections are conducted by the Election Commission of India have now become an example for most democracies across the world and today we must remember the man who is primarily to be credited for this - Mr T N Seshan. Seshan’s contributions to the Election Commission can best be seen in the words of former Chief Election Commissioner, T.S. Krishna Murthy, who in his book “Miracle of Democracy: India’s Amazing Journey,” has termed Seshan’s tenure a “turning point” in the history of Election Commission. He says “If the history of Election Commission is written, it has to be divided into two parts; pre Seshan era, where the Commission functioned as a department of the government,  and post-Seshan era, when the Commission became truly independent”. 

Images : Courtesy Wiki Commons

It is therefore no wonder that Seshan has come to be recognised and known as the father of electoral reforms in India. Seshan assumed the office of the Chief Election Commissioner (10th CEC to do so) of India on 12 December, 1990 and served till 11 December 1996. It is interesting to note that the office of the Chief of Election Commission of India, prior to Seshan assuming the charge, was considered as one of those less heralded posts in government offices, which none of the career minded Indian Administrative Service Officers - IAS, ever wanted to head. And it was no different for Seshan as well. Seshan became the 10th CEC of India, who served during the period 1990–96. When Seshan was appointed as the CEC, this post, as stated above, was considered as an ornamental position that most career officers, including Seshan, desisted. Seshan, who had occupied decorated positions like the Home and Cabinet Secretary to the Government of India prior to becoming the CEC, was not alt all happy with his new posting as the CEC. Like many of his peers - IAS colleagues, Seshan too was of the opinion that CEC was an insignificant posting for a decorated IAS officer and that this posting came with neither power nor financial benefits. 

Utterly disappointed with his new posting, Seshan, a highly pious and religious man who revered the Kanchi Seer -  who comes from the lineage of the famous Adi Shankarachaya the first of the Kanchi Seer - went to meet the Swami Paramacharya, the then Kanchi Seer, to seek his advice and blessings. The highly respected Kanchi Seer Paramacharya – who was 97 years of age then - immediately sensed the cause of Seshan’s disappointment and counselled him to treat the new posting as a God sent opportunity to serve the Indian electorate. He advised Seshan to visit the Uttiramerur temple (near Kanchi) and study the details of electoral regulations, which were prevalent in India, some 1000 years ago. The Seer informed  Seshan, that even if he were to implement a tenth of the electoral reforms that are enshrined with clarity and minute details in the Uthiramerur temple, he would be doing the greatest of service to the Indian democracy and to the electorates. The sermons of the Kanchi seer had a great impact on Seshan and the rest we all know is history. Before proceeding with Seshan and his remarkable contributions to reforming the office of the CEC and Election Commission of India, a brief write up on the history and significance of the Uttiramerur temple and its relationship with democracy is definitely warranted more so since the revered Kanchi Seer could influence TN Seshan about this temple and true to his reverence for the Seer, Seshan went and studied the temple, its history and its connect with democracy. 

The prestige of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham, founded by Sri Adi Sankaracharya on the Vaisaka Sukla full moon day in 481 B.C, has been very high and the Kanchi Seers have always been respected because of the deeds of the sages who have adorned this Peetham as the Mathadhipatis. His Holiness Sri Chandrasekharendra Sarasvathi Swamigal, also known as Swami Paramacharya, became the 68th Matadhipathi and he has been acknowledged by all as one of the most noblest and finest seers of all times. Ever since he became the Matadhipathi of Kanchi Kamakoti, in 1907, he continued to guide his followers and the community and so also aspiring souls from all over the world and one of those innumerable persons who came to seek his guidance was TN Seshan. The temple of democracy, which Swamy Paramacharya had advised Seshan to study is located in a nondescript place called Uttiramerur, which is situated some ninety kilometres from Chennai. There is nothing noteworthy at Uthiramerur except for the three famous temples: the Sundara Varadaraja Perumal Temple dedicated to Vishnu, Subramanya Temple (Murugan) and Kailasanatha Temple (Siva). About half a kilometre away is another temple called Vaikunta Perumal Koil. The sanctum sanctorum of this temple is a rectangular assembly hall (mandapa). On top of this assembly hall is the vimana, the traditional turret of temples in this region. On the walls of the assembly hall are inscriptions, in Granth and Tamil Brahmi scripts, which describe some tenets on elections: how to hold elections to village assemblies, constitution of committees, removal of errant office bearers etc. 

These inscriptions date back to the early 10th century (920AD) to the period when Parantaka Chola ruled over vast territories of South India. He defeated the Pandya kingdom and captured its capital, Madurai. The king took great interest in the administration of his dominions and was considered as a reformist of eminence. Legend has it that he was advised by his ministers to set up assemblies in villages and hand over local administration to them, which he readily agreed to do so. The rules for the local,administration were inscribed in the walls of the assembly hall in the temple complex. It is said that the temple was built, perhaps to give religious sanction to the institution of elected village assemblies. This temple - Vaikunta Perumal Koil has been declared as a national heritage site and is currently looked after by the Archeological Survey of India. One can see many inscriptions on the walls of the hall, which deal with administrative, judicial, commercial, agricultural, transportation and irrigation regulations. These regulations were meant to be administered by the then village assembly. Swami Paramacharya, knew about these inscriptions and therefore he had asked Seshan to study and understand the democratic system, which existed in India some 1000 years back and try and implement this in the Election Commission. True to the advise, blessings and sermons of Swami Paramacharya, who had informed Seshan that even if he were to implement a tenth of the electoral reforms that are enshrined with clarity and minute details in the Uthiramerur temple, he would be doing the greatest of service to the Indian democracy and to the electorates, Seshan went about reforming the Election Commission of India. Therefore while appreciating the reforms that Seshan brought out we must also credit the Kanchi Seer who motivated Seshan to do this and so also the Uttiramerur temple and the inscriptions found in this temple. 

Seshan assumed the office of CEC during a very crucial period in Indian history. During this period of Indian democracy, Seshan witnessed five Prime Ministers of India. Until Seshan became the CEC, the Election Commission (EC) was hardly known to few people and most of the elections in India remained largely under the shadow of political bigwigs. All this was to change -  and change for good and for ever - with the entry of T. N. Seshan. Every political party and their leaders, including the  high and mighty politicians, were compelled to accept the primacy and authority of the Election Commission - a constitutional body, which has a mandate for conducting free and fair elections in India. Seshan brought about revolutionary changes in the functioning of the EC and introduced many electoral reforms. He gave a slogan "Nobody dare violate the law,” to highlight the unbending powers of the EC and on several occasions he demonstrated that the EC is not a toothless tiger. His actions were desisted by many political parties and almost every one of them stood against what they called a “dictatorial attitude” of the CEC.  Seshan was also called as Al-Seshan - symbolising one famous breed of dog in India, by political leadership, but then Seshan remained undeterred in his determination to improve the  electoral system and the functioning of the EC.

Tirunellai Narayana Iyer Seshan, popularly known as T. N. Seshan, was born on the 15th December, 1932 in Thirunellai, Palakkad District, Kerala. He belonged to the 1955 batch of IAS officers from Tamil Nadu cadre. He is an alumnus of the Madras Christian College, where he did his graduation in Physics. He is also an alumnus of the Harvard University from where he completed a course in management in the 1960s. Seshan began his civil service career from his home state, Tamil Nadu, which was largely uneventful. The only time he came to lime light was when he  very sternly handled the anti-Hindi agitation while he was the Madurai District Collector (1965-67). K. Govindan Kutty, in his book ‘Seshan: An Intimate Story (1994),’ talks about this incident and states that the then Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, M. Bakthavatsalam, was flooded with complaints of suppression of civil rights by Seshan, while handling the agitation. Fortunately, Seshan did not face any trouble for his action, which had infuriated local people. 

Seshan, while serving the Tamil Nadu government, held positions such as Industries Secretary and Agriculture Secretary (1977-80). His differences with the political masters in Tamilnadu compelled him to opt for a Central posting. Mr. Seshan held several important senior positions in the Centre including the office of the Secretary of Environment and Forests Secretary and Defence Secretary. Seshan went on to occupy the pinnacle post of bureaucracy - the Cabinet Secretary to the Government of India, during Rajiv Gandhi’s time. Unfortunately when Rajiv Gandhi lost power in 1989, and VP Singh became the Prime Minister, Seshan was shunted out of the post of Cabinet Secretary and was given a side posting  as a Member in the Planning Commission.  But then the VP Singh government could not survive for long and gave way for Chandra Shekhar, who became the Prime Minister with the support of Rajiv Gandhi, with whom Seshan had cordial relations. This came as a blessing in disguise for Seshan, and he moved out from the Planning Commission and he was appointed as the CEC, in December 1990.  

Seshan Assumed the office of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of the Election Commission - Nirvachan Bhavan – on 12.12.1990, a historic day, which must get etched into the annals of Indian electoral reforms. Incidentally this day also has a special relevance for me and my wife since it happens to be the very day when we got married. In a span of just six years of his tenure as the CEC, Seshan, completely transformed the Election Commission. Unfortunately, before the entry of Seshan into the picture, the Indian electioneering system was infamously known for a rapid criminalisation of politics, evils of booth capturing, rigging, poll violence etc. all of which had got embedded into the electioneering system in India, has compelled the electorates to curse the electoral system. Indian electorates were more or less getting used to the unfortunate corrupt practices of the system. Seshan realised that urgent and extraordinary corrective measures are to be taken to cleanse the system and to bring credibility to the Election Commission of India. He firmly believed that, as advised by the Kanchi Seer, it was a god sent opportunity for him to serve his people and cleanse the electoral system in India, where the democratic practices seem to have thrived some 1000 years before. 

Managing the Indian elections is a Himalayan task with monumental challenges. It involves, among other things, operating some 8,00,000 plus voting booths; some five million plus personnel - in addition to a large contingent of security force - who are necessary for conducting free and fair elections across our vast country. The Election Commission of India has been very successfully conducting election after elections with relatively lesser complaints and the credit for this must go to T N Seshan. India is now proud of being the largest democracy in the world, with its unique electioneering success that is demonstrated regularly during the periodical elections that are held in either the states or the national elections. This achievement, for which Seshan deserves major credit, is no mean a task when considered with some of the unfavourable circumstances that exists in India, which include far remote corners, the Naxalite problems, relatively lower literacy rate and so also vast economic disparities among its people.

Of the many reforms that Seshan brought about in the Indian electoral system, some of the prominent ones that are considered as Seshan’s commandments, include; no bribe or intimidation to the voters, no distribution of liquor, no usage of official machinery for campaigning, no appeal to the voters in the name of religion, caste or communal lines, not to use places of worship for the electoral campaigns, no usage of loud speakers without the explicit written permission, no defacing of public property for political hoardings and posters, limited money spending and many other extraordinary electoral reforms, which were unheard of in the electoral system in India prior to Seshan assuming the office of the CEC. All of us take these commandments for a given now, but then when Seshan became the CEC, things were completely different.  Seshan introduced a mechanism of temporarily deputing state employees to the Election Commission, during election time. He came down heavily on employees who took their duties lightly by arguing that once the officials were assigned to the Election Commission, they fell under his jurisdiction and it was within his power to deal with the erring officials. This resulted in the entire election machinery functioning without fear or favour and ensured that the personnel deployed for the election performed their duties honestly and efficiently. Many local bureaucrats, who were seen as the puppets of local politicians until Seshan’s entry, soon realised that they will face the wrath of the Election Commission, which could affect their long term career, turned a new leaf and started functioning with honesty and sincerity. Seshan ensured that the bureaucracy was not targeted by the political class, helping the EC to not only be fair but also seen to be fair. This aspect was absolutely essential to neutralise the influence of the powerful local politicians on the administrative mechanism of the EC. Seshan remained a tough task master and never alluded to any of the illegal demands of the political class, an evidence of which can be seen in his decision of cancelling the 1992 elections in Bihar and Punjab. It sent out a very strong message “no messing around with the Election Commission”. He ensured that the model code of conduct was implemented in letter and spirit by all the political parties and candidates.

Seshan’s no nonsense approach was despised by almost all politicians and all of them joined hands to try and cut him to size. This led to the formation of a multimember body for managing the EC, which was formed in October 1993, with the appointment of M.S. Gill and G.V.G. Krishnamurty as Election Commissioners. Seshan opposed the government’s move, but then the Supreme Court upheld the government’s decision to appoint two additional Election Commissioners. The appointment of additional ECs did not deter Seshan from implementing his vision for the EC, for which he is remembered even today and will be so for eternity. Seshan did not fade into oblivion, immediately after laying down the office of CEC in December 1996. In July 1997, he unsuccessfully contested the presidential election against K.R. Narayanan and lost. Two years later, Seshan contested the Gandhinagar parliamentary constituency against the then Union Home Minister L.K. Advani, as a Congress candidate and lost. 

Seshan was also associated closely with Department of Space, where he served as the Joint Secretary. It was during this period that he came to know Dr APJ Abdul Kalam. There is another anecdote of Seshan’s association with Dr Kalam, which was revealed by President Kalam himself in one of his books. The period goes back to the time when Dr Kalam was with the DRDO and they were given a go ahead to test the Agni Missile in May 1989. Dr Kalam says in his book “ that Seshan, who was then the Cabinet Secretary, called Dr Kalam from his hotline in the dead of the night at around 3 AM on 22nd May, 1989, and asked Kalam to defer the launch of the Agni missile. The decision had come from the top as a result of the tremendous pressure from US and NATO. It was a difficult instruction for Kalam to obey since it was too late to cancel the missile launch. In his book “Advantage India: From Challenge to Opportunity”, one of the last book written by Dr Kalam, President Kalam talks about this incident. Dr. Kalam writes that he informed Seshan “Sir, the missile is at a point of no return. We cannot turn back on the test now. It is too late”. Dr Kalam says that Seshan, with a deep breath and a pause, said ‘Go ahead’.  Three hours later, the Agni missile system was flawlessly test launched on May 22, 1989. 

The mortal remains of Seshan may have been confined to the holy fire last year, but then his monumental contributions to the Election Commission will ever remain in the hearts and minds of people for generations to come. Today while commemorating the first punyatithi of Seshan let us once again remember him for his contributions to the Indian democracy. 

Long live Seshan in the hearts and minds of people.