Pics: Spoorthi Ullal

Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (DV)

Mangaluru, Apr 1: "The preamble in the Constitution is the soul of the constitution and the country. We all should imbibe the spirit of the preamble in our hearts. In our country, with the help of our Constitution, democracy is been effectively implemented. There are few democratic countries in the world. But, you can imagine the situation of those countries. The greatness of the Constitution has made a common man as the prime minister and president of the country. Hence, we should remember the Constitution with pride," said Legislative Assembly speaker Vishweshwar Hegde Kageri.

He also was speaking during an interaction programme on steps to be taken for electoral reforms in the country at town hall here on Friday April 1.

"In the 75 years of independence, our country has achieved a lot. We should feel proud of it. The country has achieved progress in all fields like developed countries. It is because of our Constitution, our country has achieved progress globally. The contribution of the Constitution is so great. Dr B R Ambedkar, after researching several constitutions of the world and gathering opinions from scholars, had drafted the Constitution of our country. That has helped the country to tread in the path of progress,” he said.

Expressing that there is a desperate need for electoral reforms, he said, "We are witnessing the decline of moral values in all the fields. The elections are a festival of democracy, but it may not be wrong if I say that elections are filled with corruption as moral values have declined. To strengthen 10th schedule, the speaker of Lok Sabha had formed a committee. The committee has given suggestions on strengthening it more effectively. Any kind of change can be brought by amending the law, but people should change to effectively implement it. The challenge before us is to increase the moral values of people in the society to reform the electoral process. The government will bring change, but the people should accept the change through moral responsibility. Only then it can be effectively implemented.

“An awareness campaign on ‘My vote is not for sale’ is necessary. The Electoral Literacy Club should be active and create awareness among the public. We cannot bring change to the system if we sell our votes for cash, liquor and muscle power. The youth should be protectors of the system. The youth have a role to play in creating the future of the country. In this regard, even senior citizens should create awareness,” he said.

Deputy commissioner Dr Rajendra KV, zilla panchayat CEO Dr Kumar, MLA Vedavyasa Kamath and others were present.