Tributes pour in for Former CEC T N Seshan, the man who cleaned up the Indian electoral system

Chennai, Nov 11: Former Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India, Tirunellai Narayana Iyer Seshan passed away in Chennai on Sunday following a cardiac arrest. He was 86. He is proved to be the greatest ringmaster of the great Indian electoral circus in the country.

Tough, and a stickler to the rule book, Seshan fearlessly took on both inert officials and slack political parties to ensure fair and free elections in the country during his trail-blazing six-year stint between 1990 and 1996 as the chief election commissioner.

Born Tirunellai Narayana Iyer Seshan on December 15, 1932, in Thirunellai, Palakkad district of Kerala, he ruthlessly enforced the model code of conduct, much to the chagrin of political parties.

Leaders cutting across party lines mourned his death and called him a guiding light.

Shri TN Seshan was an outstanding civil servant. He served India with utmost diligence and integrity. His efforts towards electoral reforms have made our democracy stronger and more participative. Pained by his demise. Om Shanti.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 10, 2019

Saddened by the demise of Shri TN Seshan. He was a true legend.
His contribution towards election reforms will be the guiding light for years to come. My deepest condolences. Om Shanti!

— Nitin Gadkari (@nitin_gadkari) November 10, 2019

Sad that former ChiefElectionCommissioner
TN Seshan has passed away in Chennai. He was my father’s classmate at VictoriaCollege Palakkad — a courageous &crusty boss who asserted the ElectionCommission’s autonomy& authority as no CEC before him had done. A pillar of our democracy pic.twitter.com/FfGBuJnWoU

— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) November 10, 2019

Saddened to know about the demise of T.N. Seshan, a stalwart for free and fair elections. His legendary contribution to democracy will be always remembered. My condolences to his family and many admirers

— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) November 10, 2019

Passing away of Mr TN Seshan is the end of an era.
Free and fair elections are a basic and essential element of a parliamentary democracy and Mr Seshan proved how the Election Commission can ensure it.
You will be missed sir RIP https://t.co/zQrTbaI7kW

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) November 10, 2019

Till he took over, political parties ferrying people to the polling stations were considered "normal," and it was during Seshan's stint that it became impossible with the model code being made sacrosanct. He ensured that bogus voting was averted to a large extent.

Such reforms were unheard of till he took over as the 10th chief election commissioner in 1990.

A 1955-batch IAS officer, though he had held various key posts in the government including that of defence secretary and the coveted position of Cabinet secretary, Seshan became a household name only after he took over as the chief election commissioner.

A no-nonsense attitude was his hallmark, and he ensured checks and balances at all levels to see that the entire election process right from the scrutiny of nominations to the conduct of polls were carried out according to the rule book.

From deploying election observers for fair play to fixing election schedules in a staggered fashion to help station security forces and rule out then-infamous "booth capturing," especially in states like Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, Seshan led a slew of initiatives some of which invited the wrath of political parties.
He was bold enough to cancel elections in Punjab in 1991 to see that the poll process was not vitiated by violence.

Educated at the Victoria College in Palakkad he was courageous and as Congress leader Sashi Tharoor put it he was a "crusty boss who asserted the Election Commission's autonomy and authority as no CEC before he had done. A pillar of our democracy."

In 1993, the government made the EC a three-member body and appointed two more commissioners and it was then perceived as an attempt to rein in the unpredictable Seshan.

Known for his tough and straight talk, he once said he will tend the "garden in his house," following retirement and not look for any assignments from the government.

A spiritually oriented man, he was a devotee of Kanchi Sankara Math.