Should Children Be Involved in Political Campaigning?

23 Oct 2026

Tags: Polity & Constitution   Foundations   Constitutional features

Source: The Hindu

Context: The Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), led by actor C. Joseph Vijay, attracted substantial youth support. Controversy arose over appeals asking children to persuade parents to vote for the party.

• Madras High Court observations: Justice D. Bharatha Chakravarthy criticised involving children in electioneering and suggested that Parliament consider whether such practices should constitute grounds for setting aside an election. The petition was dismissed, with no evidence established that the election had been manipulated.

Arguments Against Involving Children in Political Campaigning

• Manipulation of parental choices: Children may use emotional attachment and repeated requests to influence parents' voting decisions, potentially substituting emotional pressure for informed electoral choice.
• Pester power: Borrowed from consumer marketing, this refers to children's repeated demands influencing household purchasing decisions. Its use in electoral campaigns extends commercial persuasion techniques into democratic decision-making.
• Erosion of child agency: Children may be scripted to deliver predetermined political messages rather than express independently formed opinions, turning them into instruments of adult political interests.
• Celebrity influence: Children's attachment to popular actors, films and songs can be leveraged to generate political enthusiasm without an understanding of candidates' policies or governance records.
• Child welfare and digital privacy: Campaign videos may remain permanently accessible online, exposing children to future embarrassment, unwanted publicity or reputational consequences without meaningful informed consent.
• Democratic concerns: Democracy requires informed and voluntary choices. Emotional pressure mediated through family relationships can weaken deliberative decision-making, even where direct coercion of adult voters cannot be established.

Arguments for Children's Political Participation

• Right to political expression: Children should be able to express views on issues affecting their lives, including education, nutrition, recreation and public services.
• Democratic socialisation: Age-appropriate political discussions can develop civic awareness, critical thinking and an understanding of democratic institutions.
• Distinction between participation and manipulation: Genuine participation enables children to form and communicate independent views; manipulation involves adults scripting their messages to advance predetermined political objectives.
• Parental agency: Adults retain the legal freedom to choose their candidates. A child's appeal does not automatically establish that the parent's electoral choice was coerced or invalid.

Legal and Institutional Framework

• Representation of the People Act, 1951 — Section 123: Defines corrupt electoral practices, including undue influence under Section 123(2), which involves direct or indirect interference with the free exercise of electoral rights. Whether a particular appeal crosses this threshold depends on the facts and applicable legal standards.
• Article 19(1)(a): Protects freedom of speech and expression, relevant to political expression, while remaining subject to constitutionally permitted restrictions.
• UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC): Article 12 recognises children's right to express views in matters affecting them; Article 13 protects freedom of expression; Article 3 makes the child's best interests a primary consideration.
• UNICEF participation framework: Distinguishes meaningful child participation from manipulation and tokenism, emphasising children's agency, informed involvement and freedom from instrumentalisation.
• Child labour legislation: The Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, regulates child labour and prohibits specified employment of children. Whether particular political campaigning falls within its provisions requires a context-specific legal assessment.

Way Forward

• Enact precise safeguards: Consider narrowly defined rules against scripting or coercively involving children in political persuasion, without criminalising their independent political expression.
• Protect child agency: Ensure children's participation is voluntary, age-appropriate and based on their own views rather than predetermined campaign messages.
• Establish digital safeguards: Develop consent protocols for campaign videos featuring minors, including protections against exploitative publicity and unnecessary long-term exposure.
• Promote electoral awareness: Encourage schools and families to teach political literacy, policy evaluation and independent reasoning rather than personality-driven voting.
• Clarify electoral accountability: Establish clear standards for distinguishing permissible political communication from undue influence, with appropriate evidence requirements and proportionate remedies.