EC's dialogue with stakeholders

We accept the premise that it is not the sole responsibility of the Election Commission to hold free and fair elections, but on its rests the primary responsibility of doing so.  And a series of dialogues that the EC organised over the last several months with the stakeholders was indeed an acknowledgement of this reality. What was noticeable was the eagerness and sincerity of all the interlocutors to hold an elections that fits the description of a 'good election'. 

Political parties have given their views and suggestions which merits the ECs serious consideration for fulfilling its most important mandate. It is now for the EC to come out with its own views and suggestions for making the next parliamentary elections participatory and acceptable to all the stakeholders. It should also make public any difficulty it might face and the way out of it. 

And it's the criticality of the role of the EC in the democratic setup that we want to flag. If election is a crucial process for a functioning democracy, fundamental to the formation of a representative government, then the EC's role, among all the democratic institutions, happens to be the most central.   

We are constrained to say that the previous EC did not quite redeem itself during its entire tenure; and the manner of its conduct of the election in January of 2014 has sullied the reputation and dented the credibility of a very important democratic institution of the country. It is for the Commission to assure everyone that it would ensure a level playing field for all, and that an election that can be participated by all in a free manner would be its main endeavor. And neither is beyond the capacity of the EC to realize.