Representation of People Act

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Representation of People Act

Transparency, Verifiability, and Secrecy are three pillars of free and fair elections.
Technologically advanced nations like Germany, Netherlands, and Ireland have abandoned
EVMs.
2nd ARC: RPA, 1951 should be amended to disqualify all facing charges related to grave and
heinous offences, and corruption.
Funding and Simultaneous Elections

Former electoral commissioner Y Qureshi recommended National electoral bond...anyone
contribute in it.....parties will be allowed according to performance
Indrajit Gupta committee on state funding....recommended partial state funding.
Law commission suggested simultaneous elections for GOOD GOVERNANCE.
Standing committee recommended a cycle of elections, according to which elections to some
legislative assemblies whose term end within six months to one year before or after the election date
could be held during the midterm of Lok Sabha .For the rest of the states, elections could be held
along with the general elections to Lok Sabha.
SC judgements on election reforms

Jan Chaukidari vs UoI [Patna HC]: person in custody to be debarred from contesting elections.
Lily Thomas Case: MP MLA to be disqualified on date of criminal conviction (No 3 month
window to appeal)
Vote right to cast negative vote (NOTA)
Subramanian Swamy vs ECI: VVPAT ruling
Content of Election manifesto to be regulated by ECI......issue of freebies
Stay on caste based politics in UP
SC: PIL filed in 2008 by NGO Resurgence India: Nomination papers can be rejected by EC for
non-disclosure or suppression of information, including that of asset and criminal background.
....to check the tendency among candidates to leave blank entries in nomination papers.
Election Funding
Dinesh Goswami Comm, 1990: limited support (vehicle fuel, microphone, electoral rolls etc)
and ban on company funding.
Indrajit Gupta Comm: partial state funding (mainly in kind)
NCRWC: State funding only after better regulatory mechanism.
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2nd ARC: partial state funding to reduce unnecessary expenditure.
Election Awareness
SVEEP Program of ECI: Systematic Voter's Education and Electoral Participation Program.
[http://ecisveep.nic.in/division/about-us/]
Voter Awareness Forums (VAF) by ECI, Chief Elector Officers in States, and in Districts by District
election officers.
EVMs were first used inParavoor Assembly Constituency of Kerala,1982

EC took a decision to use only EVMs in 2004 Lok Sabha elections
Advantages of EVM
Eliminate possibility of doubtful/invalid vote
process of counting becomes faster
eco-friendly
Concerns about EVMs:
Transparency
Verifiability
An electronic display of the voter’s selection may not be the same as the vote stored
electronically in the machine’s memory.
To rectify this, VVPAT was introduced.
But VVPATs solve only the problems at the voting part and the counting part still
remains an opaque operation.
Also, at present, EC’s VVPAT auditing is restricted to 5 randomly chosen polling
booth per constituency.[2019 SC Ruling]
Secrecy:
votes cast via EVMs are counted on individual booth basis, which allows one to discern
voting patterns and renders marginalised communities vulnerable to pressure.
A totaliser machine was proposed as a remedy to this alternative.
Totaliser machine allows votes from 14 booths to be counted together ---NOT ADOPTED
YET
So, on all three counts such as transparency, verifiability and secrecy — EVMs are flawed.
ECI’s views on reliability of EVMs:

EVMs are standalone systems and not connected to internet unlike EVM used in other countries
like USA.
Program which controls the functioning of the control unit is burnt into a micro chip on a “one
time programmable basis”.
EVM’s use dynamic coding to enhance security of data transmitted from ballot unit to control
unit
machines prepared for a poll are physically sealed in the presence of candidates or their
agents and guarded by CRPF
Two-stage randomization is done, to make sure nobody is able to determine constituency-
EVM mapping.
Measures taken by ECI:

In 2009, ECI invited sceptics to demonstrate the alleged fallibility of EVMs, using 100 randomly
sourced machines from 10 states. The outcome was that none of the persons could
demonstrate that EVM could be tampered
ECI said that EVMs can neither be reprogrammed nor controlled by the external device.
The next vote can be recorded only after the Presiding Officer enables the ballot on the
Control Unit. In between, the machine becomes dead to any signal from outside.
RPA
India being the largest democracy of the world, elections in India have been the largest electoral exercise in the
world since the 1st general elections of 1952.The cultural, linguistic, religious and ethnic diversity of the
country make this event more complex.
Part XV of the Constitution of India consists of Articles on Elections.

Article 324 : election commission.
Article 325: No person to be ineligible for inclusion in, or to claim to be included in a special, electoral
roll on grounds of religion, race, caste or sex
Article 326: Universal adult suffrage
Article 327: Power of Parliament to make provision with respect to elections to Legislatures
Article 328: Power of Legislature of a State to make provision with respect to elections to such
Legislature
Article 329: Bar to interference by courts in electoral matters
Article 82: In India, delimitation is carried out by the Delimitation Commission, set up after every
census by an act of the Parliament.
Constitution allows Parliament to make provisions in all matters relating to elections to the Parliament and
State Legislatures. In exercise of this power, the Parliament has enacted laws like Representation of the
People Act 1950 (RPA Act 1950), Representation of the People Act 1951 (RPA Act 1951). [under Art 327]
Representation of Peoples Act 1950 (RPA Act 1950) provides for the following: [basic ground work]
1. Qualification of voters.
2. Preparation of electoral rolls.
3. Delimitation of constituencies.
4. Allocation of seats in the Parliament and state legislatures.
5. manner of filling seats in RS allotted to Union Territories.
Representation of Peoples Act 1951 (RPA Act 1951) provides for: [actual implementation]
1. Actual conduct of elections.
2. Administrative machinery for conducting elections.
3. Poll.
4. Election offences.
5. Election disputes.
6. By-elections.
7. Registration of political parties.
[recently rules for postal ballot released by EC]
Delimitation Commission Act of 1952, which provides for the readjustment of seats, delimitation and
reservation of territorial constituencies and other related matters.
Presidential and Vice-Presidential Election Act 1952, which provides for the conduct of Presidential and
Vice- Presidential election and mechanism for the settlement of any dispute arising out of such elections.
Elections are the life blood of any democracy.
Salient Features of the Representation of People Act 1951

1. Actual conduct of elections.
2. Administrative machinery for conducting elections.
3. Poll.
4. Election offences.
5. Election disputes.
6. By-elections.
7. Registration of political parties.
Qualification for membership of the Lok Sabha: According to the act, a person shall not be qualified
to be chosen to fill a seat in the Lok Sabha unless:
* He is a member of any Scheduled Caste of any state and is an elector for any Parliamentary
constituency; in the case of a seat reserved for the Scheduled Castes in any State.
* He is a member of any Scheduled Tribe of any state and is an elector for any Parliamentary
constituency in the case of a seat reserved for the Scheduled Tribes.
* He is an elector for any Parliamentary constituency; in case of any other seat.
Qualification for membership of the Rajya Sabha: an elector for a Parliamentary constituency.
Disqualification: Also, a person can be disqualified on various grounds. E.g.: corrupt practices, office
of profit, person convicted of any offence and sentenced to imprisonment for not less than two years
etc.
Election expenses: According to the section 77 of RPA, 1951, every candidate contesting in election
to the House of the People or to the Legislative Assembly of a State, shall, either by himself or by his
election agent, keep a separate and correct account of all expenditure in connection with the election
incurred or authorized by him or by his election agent.
Corrupt practices:
Section 123 defines the corrupt practices like bribery, undue influence, inciting religious
sentiments, booth capturing etc.
Election disputes:Representation of the People (Amendment) Act, 1966 abolished the election
tribunals. It transferred the election petitions to the High Courts within 45 days whose orders can be
appealed to Supreme Court. However, election disputes regarding the election of President and Vice-
President are directly heard by the Supreme Court.
Grounds of petition
1. candidate not qualified
2. corrupt practice committed by candidate
3. nomination has been improperly rejected
Apart from the above, RPA act is pivotal in preventing criminals being elected as representatives, is
always quoted by Supreme Court and High Court in various judgments.
The recent judgement in the Abhiram Singh v/s C.D. Commachen case : related to section 123 (3) of
RPA, 1951
In Lily Thomas v/s Union of India, the Supreme Court declared Section 8 (4) of the
Representation of the People Act, 1951, (RPA) which allowed legislators a three-month window to
appeal against their conviction — effectively delaying their disqualification until such appeals were
exhausted — as unconstitutional.
2004 judgment of the Patna HC in Jan Chaukidari v Union of India — upheld by the Supreme
Court in 2013— all those in lawful police or judicial custody, other than those held in preventive
detention, will forfeit their right to stand for election.
ECI Powers
Goswami Committee: teeth the ECI with powers to “refer any matter for investigation to any
agency”; to “prosecute any person who has committed an electoral offence”; and to “appoint a
Special Court for the trial of any offence or offences” under RPA .
The EC cannot order the investigation even when the model code of conduct was in force.
These provisions will have application only during the period of the election. Moreover,
there is no provision to challenge the corrupt practice of candidate, who has lost the
election
Under Section 123(3) of the RPA, appeal on the grounds of religion, race, caste, community or
language etc. and promotions of feelings of enmity between different classes constitute corrupt
practice but same can be questioned only by way of election petition and ECI cannot order the
investigation even when Model Code of Conduct is in force.
ECI was not able to curb hate and communally divisive electoral speeches over the years like the
recent appeal of BSP leader to Muslim votes.
ECI doesn’t have the power to reject the nomination of contesting candidates and de-register
the political parties for seeking vote on the basis of religion, race, caste, community or language.
In January 2010, ECI had proposed that the Act should be amended to curtail misuse of
caste and religion ==NOTHING DONE
* Section 10 (Disposal of business by Election Commission) of The Election Commission

(Conditions of Service of Election Commissioners and Transaction of Business) Act, 1991, lays
down that “all business of the EC shall, as far as possible, be transacted unanimously”.
* Dissent is, however, provided for in the Act itself, which says: “If CEC and other ECs differ in opinion
on any matter, such matter shall be decided according to the opinion of the majority”.
* However, despite the existence of the provision to take decisions by majority since 1993, very
rarely has dissent been recorded.
Conclusion:
There is a need to codify the true powers of CEC and ECs and the procedure to be followed in
case of extraordinary situations to keep the integrity and sanctity of ECI intact.
RPA, 1951
DISQUALIFICATIONS: RPA, 1951 in chapter III of part II provides for 8 different grounds for
disqualification of MP and MLAs
1. Section 8(1)
disqualification on conviction for certain offences

IPC crimes:
1. Sec 153A: promoting enmity ion grd of religion, race, place of birth,
residence, language etc. or doing act prejudicial to maintenance of
harmony
2. sec 171E: offence of bribery
3. section 171F (offence of undue influence or personation at an election)
4. sub section (1) or sub-section (2) of section 376 /376A/ 376B/ 376C/
376D (offences relating to rape) or section 498A (offence of cruelty
towards a woman by husband or relative of a husband) or sub-section
(2) or sub-section (3) of section 505 (offence of making statement
creating or promoting enmity, hatred or ill-will between classes or
offence relating to such statement in any place of worship or in any
assembly engaged in the performance of religious worship or religious
ceremonies)
5. Protection of Civil Rights Act 1955: untouchability if only
6. customs Act: import or export of prohibited goods fine: 6
7. membership/dealing with funds of unlawful body under UAPA, 1967 year from
8. Foreign Exchange (Regulation) Act, 1973 date of
9. Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 convition
10. Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, 1987: Committing imprison
terrorist acts ment: 6
11. Section 7 (offence of contravention of the provisions of sections 3 to 6) year from
of the Religious Institutions (Prevention of Misuse) Act, 1988 release
12. Offences under RPA: Section 125 (offence of promoting enmity
between classes in connection with the election) or section 135
(offence of removal of ballot papers from polling stations) or section
135A (offence of booth capturing) of clause (a) of sub-section (2) of
section 136 (offence of fraudulently defacing or fraudulently destroying
any nomination paper) of RPA, 1951;
13. Section 6 (offence of conversion of a place of worship) of the Places of
Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991;
14. Section 2 (offence of insulting the Indian National Flag or the
Constitution of India) or section 3 (offence of preventing singing of
National Anthem) of the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act,
1971: insulting Indian flag
15. Commission of Sati (Prevention) Act, 1987;
16. Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988
17. Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002
convicted for the contravention of any law regarding

2. Section prevention of hoarding or profiteering, adulteration of food or
8(2) drugs or Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 and sentenced to
imprisonment for not less than 6 month
6 year
3. Section disqualificati
2 year imprisonment under any offence
8(3) on from
release
president
will
determine
duration of
4. Section disqualification of ground of corrupt practices: charges under disqualificat
8A section 123 of RPA n on
opinion of
EC..based
on order of
HC
person dismissed for corruption or for disloyalty to the State

5. Section
from govt service will be disqualified for a period of five years
9
from the date of such dismissal
Disqualification for govt contracts: A person shall be

6. Sec 9 A disqualified if there subsists a contract entered into by him in
the course of his trade or business with the appropriate Govt.
e.g. 20 APP
MLA s have
been
disqualified
by
President
on reco
of EC on
charge of
holding
disqualification for office under govt company (> 25% stake)----
office of
[LIKE OFFICE OF PROFIT]
parliamentar
In March 2006 President APJ Abdul Kalam disqualified
y secretary
7. sec 10 Jaya Bachchan of the SP from Rajya Sabha with
which is
retrospective effect from July 14, 2004, for holding an
considered
office of profit as chairperson of the UP Film
a office of
Development Council
profit.
Delhi HC
set aside
disqualifica
tion [
because
legislators
were not
given
hearing]
8. Section
disqualification for failure to lodge election expenses
10 A
However, section 11 :EC may remove any of the above disqualification except under section
8A or reduce the period of any such disqualification.
Disqualification for VOTING
Section 11A : if any person is convicted of an offence punishable under

1. Section 171E (offence of bribery) or
1. Section 171F (offence of undue influence or personation at an election) of IPC; or
2. Section 125 (Promoting enmity between classes in connection with election) or
1. section 135 (removal of ballot paper from polling station) or
2. Section 136(2)(a) (found guilty of some electoral offences, while being an officer in
connection with the election) of RPA 1951,
he will be disqualified for voting at any election for a period of six years from the date of
conviction. Further, it provides that a person disqualified by a decision of the President under 8A
for any period will be disqualified for the same period for voting at any election.
However, Section 11 B provides that EC may, for reason to be recorded, remove any
disqualification except under section 8A.
Administrative Machinery to conduct elections
Part IV provide for delegation of function of EC: may be performed also by a Deputy Election
Commissioner or by the Secretary to the EC as per directions of EC
Chief electoral officer: supervise the election work in the State/Union Territory
District electoral officer --nominated by EC --an officer of SG in consultatn with SG
Observer: appointed by EC---observer shall hv power to give direcion to returning officer to
stop counting votes, or not declare result in case of booth capturing
Returning officer for 1 or more const.---EC may also appoint Asst RO
Presiding officer: by DEO
Polling officer to assist the presiding officer
ALL shall be deemed to be on deputation to the EC during the election period and such officers
shall be subject to the control, superintendence and discipline of the EC
Registration of PP
application must be accompanied by a copy of the memorandum or rules and regulations

of the association or body
After examining application, EC takes decision to register---decision of EC is final in this
regard.
treasurer or any other person authorized by the political party must prepare a report in
each financial year listing the contribution in excess of twenty thousand rupees received by
such political party from any person or company (Other than Government) in that financial
year. This report must be submitted to the Election Commission before the due date for
furnishing a return of its income of that financial year. If the political party fails to submit a
report then it shall not be entitled to any tax relief
Benefits of recognised PP
ENTITLED TO free supply of certain materials like copies of electoral rolls as published
under RPA, 1950 or any other material prescribed
CG can decide items to be provided to recognised PP in consultation with EC
Other benefits
free air time on doordarshan AND AIR
nomination paper subscribed by only 10
name of candidates of recognised PP on top in ballot paper in alphabetical order
followed by registered party n independent
if nominated candidates dies, election adjourned---PP given 1 week time to nominate--
election starts
Recognized PP: symbols given for exclusive use
proposed amendment to RPA, 1951 for state funding ===only to recognised PP
Criteria in
National Parties State Parties
RPA, 1951
6% of votes
>6% of votes in 4+ states in LS/SL + 4 seats in LS in SL + 2
seats in SL
6% of valid
2% of seats in LS in 3+ states votes in LS
+ 1 seat
3% of seats
State Parties in 4 states in SL OR 3
seats
1:25 LS
seats in state
8% of votes
to LS/SL
Declaration of Assets
every elected candidate for either houses of Parliament shall Any willful
furnish information regarding relating to the movable and contraventio
immovable property owned by him, his spouse or his children; n of such
Section 75 A liabilities to any public financial institution within 90 days from rules
date of subscribing an oath for set in parliament considered
a breach of
manner of declaration by rules made by chairman/ speaker--- privilege
Election Expenses
sec 77 RPA, 1951: every contesting candidate ==keep a separate account of all expenditure
Revised limits in 2022:
Every contesting candidate within thirty days from the date of election lodge with the
DEO an account of election expenses
Corrupt Practices
defines the corrupt practices like bribery, undue influence,

inciting religious sentiments, booth capturing etc.
1. bribery==Under RPA, the person accepting such
gratifications is also considered guilty of indulging in
corrupt practices. The term "gratification" implies
monetary gratifications as well as all forms of
entertainment and all forms of employment for reward
2. Undue influence includes any direct or indirect
interference with the free exercise of any electoral right by
the candidate
3. Appeal to vote or refrain from voting for any person on
the ground of his religion, race, caste, community or
language or the use of, or appeal to religious symbols or
the use of, or appeal to, national symbols, such as the president
national flag or the national emblem will
4. promotion of feelings of enmity or hatred on grounds of determine
religion, race, caste, community, or language duration of
5. propagation of the practice or the commission of sati disqualificati
Section 123 6. publication of any false statement of fact in relation to the onn on
personal character or conduct of any candidate opinion of
7. providing vehicle for free conveyance of elector to polling EC..based
station on order of
8. contravention of max. limit of election expenses under sec. HC===Sec
77 RPA, 1951 8A
9. obtaining or procuring or abetting any assistance (other
than the giving of vote) from any govt servant for the
furtherance of the prospects of that candidate's election
10. booth capturing
Election Offences
Sec 125: promoting enmity--imprisonment upto 3

years/fine/both
sec 125A: false affidavit---imprisonment upto 6
months/fine/both
Section 126 (no meeting 48 hrs)--imprisonment of 2
yrs/fine/both
Section 126 A (no exit poll..EC specify date n
time..2yr/fine/both),
Section 127 (disturbance at election meetings--can be
arrested w/o warrant--6 months/fine upto 2000 rs),
Section 127 A (Restriction on printing of pamphlets,
posters etc),
sec 128: maintenance of secrecy of voting by officers,
sec 129: officers not to influence voting,
sec 130: prohibition of canvassing in or near polling
Chapter III stations---fine up to rs 250
of Part VII sec 131/ 132: penalty for misconduct at polling stations--
of RPA, like using loudspeakers,
1951: sec 132 A : : Penalty for failure to observe procedure for
Election voting
Offences Sec 133: Penalty for illegal hiring or procuring of
conveyance at the elections
Sec 134: Breaches of official duty in connection with
elections
Sec 134A: Penalty for government servants for acting as
election agent, polling agent or counting agent
sec 138B: prohibition on going armed, offence of booth
capturing, no liquor (48 hrs), --Except RO, Presiding
Officer/Police Officer /person appointed to maintain peace
& order at the polling station
Sec 135: Removal of ballot papers from polling station
Sec 135A: Offence of booth capturing
Sec 135B: Grant of paid holiday to employees on the day
of poll
Sec 135C: Liquor not to be sold, given or distributed on
polling day
Model Code of Conduct

MCC is a set of norms for conduct and behavior on the part of the Parties and candidates, in
particular..... evolved with the consensus of the political parties.
origin of the MCC dates back to 1960 when the MCC started as a small set of Dos and Don’ts
for the Assembly election in Kerala in 1960.
MCC was consolidated and issued in the current form in 1991.
Parliamentary Standing Committee, 2013 recommended statutory status. ---OBSERVED THAT
most provisions still covered by laws
Counter: swiftness of action will be gone..judicial delays.....
exposing to needless litigation
T.N Shesan [CEC] postponed elections and took a no. of actions for MCC VIOLATION.
ECI evolved a code for social media.
UoI V/s Harbans Sigh Jalal==MCC got judicial recognition===remains in force from the date
of announcement of elections till the completion of elections.
only the new projects, etc. which have not taken off on the ground that have to be deferred till
the completion of elections. If there is any work that cannot wait for any reason (relief work on
account of any calamity, etc), the matter can be referred to the Commission for clearance
Processof notification of general elections

President notify date of election as recommended by EC. no such notification can be issued
earlier than LS[<6 months [except in case of dissolution]], RS [<3 months]....Governor in case of
state elections
EC sought insertion of a new section, 58 B, to RPA, 1951 to enable it to take action if parties
bribe voters of a constituency, which has not come to light.
Election Laws (Amendment) Bill 2021- Amending the Representation of People’s Act:
The Election Laws (Amendment) Bill seeks to amend certain sections of the Representation of the
People Act, 1950 and 1951. These are-
Amendment to the Representation of People’s Act 1950:

1. Section 23: to allow the linking of electoral roll data with the Aadhaar ecosystem.
2. Section 14: to allow having four “qualifying” dates for eligible people to register as voters.
As of now, January 1 of every year is the sole qualifying date. Now, the 1st day of January,
April, July, and October in a calendar year will be the qualifying dates in relation to the
preparation or revision of electoral rolls.
Amendment to Section 20 of the RP Act, 1950 and section 60 of the RP Act, 1951:
1. These will allow the elections to become gender-neutral for service voters.
It will replace the word “wife” of service voter with the word “spouse” of service voter,
making the statutes “gender-neutral”.
SC Observation on suspension of MLA in Maha in 2021:

Representation of People Act

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Representation of People Act

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Representation of People Act

Funding and Simultaneous Elections

SC judgements on election reforms

2nd ARC: partial state funding to reduce unnecessary expenditure.

EVMs were first used inParavoor Assembly Constituency of Kerala,1982

ECI’s views on reliability of EVMs:

Measures taken by ECI:

Part XV of the Constitution of India consists of Articles on Elections.

Elections are the life blood of any democracy.

Salient Features of the Representation of People Act 1951

* Section 10 (Disposal of business by Election Commission) of The Election Commission

disqualification on conviction for certain offences

convicted for the contravention of any law regarding

person dismissed for corruption or for disloyalty to the State

Disqualification for govt contracts: A person shall be

Disqualification for VOTING

Section 11A : if any person is convicted of an offence punishable under

Administrative Machinery to conduct elections

application must be accompanied by a copy of the memorandum or rules and regulations

defines the corrupt practices like bribery, undue influence,

Sec 125: promoting enmity--imprisonment upto 3

Model Code of Conduct

Processof notification of general elections

Amendment to the Representation of People’s Act 1950:

SC Observation on suspension of MLA in Maha in 2021:

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