AAP MP Raghav Chadha speaks in the Rajya Sabha during the Monsoon session of Parliament, in New Delhi.
Credit: PTI Photo
New Delhi: AAP Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha on Thursday demanded lowering the age for fighting Lok Sabha and Assembly elections from the present 25 years to 21 years, saying “we are a young country with old politicians”.
Raising the demand in Rajya Sabha during Zero Hour, the 35-year-old MP said the question needs to be asked whether the elected representatives are also young when a majority of Indians belong to that age group.
He said 26 per cent of the MPs in the first Lok Sabha (1952-57) was below 40 years while the figure for the previous 17th Lok Sabha (2014-19) was 12 per cent.
“When our country is getting younger, the elected representatives are older. We are a young country with old politicians. We must aspire to become a young country with young politicians,” he said.
He said the reason for this is because people consider politics as a “bad profession”.
No parent wants his son to get into politics and become a ‘neta’ (leader) but wants them to be an engineer or doctor or Chartered Accountant or a sportsperson.
“We need to incentivise our youth so that they are attracted to mainstream politics. We should reduce our age limit for contesting elections from 25 years to 21 years. If an 18-year-old can vote and decide on who will rule, why can’t he become a candidate at 21?” he asked.