Need to develop global standards to control disinformation: election commissioner

Election Commissioner Anup Chandra Pandey underlined on Tuesday the need to develop global standards and standard operating procedures on management of electoral roll, control of disinformation and fake news to help conduct free, fair and transparent polls.

Delivering concluding remarks at an international conference of EMBs in New Delhi, Pandey highlighted the challenges like polarisation, populism and voter apathy faced by election management bodies (EMBs) globally.

He emphasised the need for mutual cooperation, continuous engagement and knowledge sharing on a regular basis in a structured manner between the EMBs to address these challenges.

Pandey said efforts should be made to bring more and more democracies on board in a manner that involves and engages them in strengthening electoral democracy.

He said though elections are key to democracy, the quality of functional efficiency of conducting elections by the EMBs in turn depends on their effectiveness in addressing challenges and maintaining independence, according to a statement.

Pandey urged all the EMBs to strengthen democratic norms and processes and leverage all relevant platforms for collective action.