Word: seshan
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...month later, Seshan issued yet another diktat. Ignoring the Rao government's wishes, he decided to stagger balloting in four important northern states over a month, so that 40,000 troops could be deployed in each state to prevent vote rigging. The government then tried to weaken Seshan's power by appointing the two additional election commissioners to outvote his decisions, but the embattled commissioner won a supreme court injunction preventing the action. Next, Congress hit on the strategy of a constitutional amendment. V.C. Shukla, Rao's Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, argued that the reason was merely that "we want...
Their admiration was based on Seshan's whip-cracking achievements in areas such as Vaishali, an electoral district in the violence-prone Bihar state, where a federal by-election was held last month. By seeking to revoke the election, Seshan forced both Congress and opposition candidates to abide by election rules on spending limits. Admits Atal Behari Vajpayee, a legislator of the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party: "He put the fear of God into politicians." In the end, the by-election was held peacefully, and the candidate of a small local party was declared the winner...
...Seshan's ability to enforce reforms is in no small measure the result of his personal probity -- and his ego. "Nobody can tempt or terrorize me," he says. "I am unbelievably fearless. I also live a life of extraordinary simplicity. I don't want anything from anybody." A strict vegetarian who does not smoke or drink, Seshan brought back nothing other than a $1.25 yo-yo after a month's visit to the U.S. three years ago. Says Jaipal Reddy, a federal legislator of the opposition Janata Dal party: "He is a bully, but his financial integrity is unquestionable...
...latest victory has left the tough-talking Seshan determined to "bash on," removing illegal immigrants from the voters' lists and setting up polling booths in areas where low-caste people and minorities can vote without fear. But Congress has not given up either. The government says that next month it will try again in its bid to dilute the commissioner's authority. By then, they hope to win over the support of some more opposition members. Warns Khushwant Singh, a prominent New Delhi newspaper columnist: "So long as Seshan is around, the war will continue...
...quietly escaped from the residence and flew to Madras on an Indian air force plane to claim Rajiv's body. The rest of India was in shock. By government order, shops and offices remained closed, and security forces patrolled the capital. A crucial decision came when elections commissioner T.N. Seshan put off the second and third main rounds of voting for a month. Election-related mayhem had taken 229 lives across the country even before Gandhi's assassination; in its wake, 26 more people died. A week of national mourning was proclaimed, and Gandhi's body was laid to rest...
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