In India, literacy level or education of a candidate has no role to play in his contestation of becoming a leader. Instead, the sine qua non to contest elections seeking membership of Parliament or Legislative Assembly or Council requires a person who has filed nomination to accomplish certain qualifications and also concomitantly necessitates that such person does not fall under prescribed disqualifications. These qualifications have been stipulated under the Constitution and also under the Representative of People’s Act, 1951. According to Article 84 and 173, a person shall be designated as candidates standing in elections only when:

a)    He is a citizen of India and has made an affirmation before the concerned authority according to the form provided for this purpose under the Third Schedule.

b)    He has a minimum requirement of age which is 30 years in case of contesting a seat in the Council of States or State Legislative Council and 25 years in case of the House of People and the Assembly of the State.

c)    He has taken the oath of allegiance, before the date of scrutiny (Pashupati Nath Singh v, Harithereshwar Prasad, AIR 1968 SC 1064).

Likewise, under the R.P. Act, 1951, the Parliament, as empowered under Article 84(c) and 173(c) by the Constitution, has laid down certain qualifications according to which a candidate must be an elector for the election and in case of seats reserved for a particular category such as Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe, the candidate must belong to that particular category, produce evidence for the same and make such mention in his nomination form.

Further, the disqualifications have been specifically mentioned under Article 102 and 191 of the Constitution which state that a person shall be disqualified from contesting elections if he holds any office of profit under the Government of India or of any state or, is of unsound mind declared by the competent court or, is an undischarged insolvent or, disqualified by or under any law made by the Parliament or, disqualified under the Tenth Schedule. Also, the statutory disqualifications under the R.P Act, 1951 include conviction for certain offences (see section 8 of the Act), for corrupt practices, corrupt or disloyal government servant, holding a contract with the government, officer in government company with not less than twenty-five percent shares, failing in lodging account of election expenses without any good reason or justification and any other as prescribed by the Parliament.

Apparently, education has not at all been a qualifying criterion for the candidates to contest elections. Indeed, in the first half of the nineteenth century while the Constitution was being framed, the education or literacy level of the people of the country was too low to include education as a requisite to contest the election and that then undoubtedly, it would have been harsh and unjust to exclude a substantial majority. However, in the present world, education has been considered as one among the core essentials to lead a good life. As Nelson Mandela said, “education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world”. Also, this weapon could be effectively used to change society and divert it towards the path of rational and sustainable progress.

Further, education could also be regarded as crucial paraphernalia for grooming a better life as it is the sine qua non in almost all the professions dedicated to the service of the nation. In fact, to understand the problems of society and other lacunae and impediments in the development of the nation, it is essential for a person to have knowledge regarding the concerns of the nation, not only via what he sees or hears but also from what he has learnt. Though this may sound jocular to many of them, proper course work or program must be run for the candidates who seek to contest elections to make them aware about the arena they enter into. With the aim to have an educated society, what else could be the greatest demotivation that the politicians, who control the halter of the country, are not required to be educated? The far-sighted framers of the Constitution had expressly empowered the Parliament to legislate and make laws related to, or connected with the elections in India (Article 327). They clearly intended to allow any changes regarding the law pertaining to elections depending upon the needs of the society.

Article 21-A and 45 of the Constitution have shed light upon education as an important part of life by enshrining the right to education as a fundamental right and education up to six years as a directive principle of State policy. Article 51A (k) has maintained that it is the fundamental duty of every parent or guardian to provide education to their children or wards between the age of six to fourteen. This has manifestly indicated that education forms the core value of an individual’s life for him to lead his life in a better manner. Likewise, for a country’s better life and future, educated leaders are essentially required. Timothy Besely (2009), in his paper “Do educated leaders matters?” has maintained that the progress of a country in terms of the economy depends largely upon the education of the leaders. He has shown that educated leaders tend to largely contribute to better economic growth of a nation. His research concluded that “the more educated is the leader we lose, the larger is the negative impact on economic growth” and also that “the effect of a transition from a non-educated to an educated leader increases growth”.  Admittedly, it is extremely necessary to realize the importance of educated leaders for the country and the need for the Parliament to revisit the qualifications required to be the representatives of the people. It is the high time when education must seriously be given importance in the progress of our country rather than as an embargo over its development.