Highlight the electroral reforms introduced in india
Answers
Answer:
following are 10 reforms done recently.
Explanation:
The following electoral reforms have been introduced in Indian electoral system in the last few years:
1. Lowering of Voting Age:
The Constitution (Sixty-first Amendment) Act, 1988 amends Article 326 by substitutes the words ’18 years’ for ’21 years’. This came into force on 28 March, 1989.
2. Deputation to Election Commission:Under the Representation of the Peoples (Amendment) Act, 1988 a new section 13CC was inserted which provides that officers or staff engaged in preparation, revision and correction of electoral rolls for elections shall be deemed to be on deputation of Election Commission for the period of such employment and such personnel shall during that period, be subject to control, superintendence and discipline of Election Commission.
3. Increase in Number of proposers:
Number of electors who are required to sign as proposers in nomination papers for elections to Council of States and State Legislative Council has been increased to ten per cent of the electors of the constituency or ten such electors, whichever is less, to prevent frivolous candidates.
4. Electronic Voting Machine:
The Representation of the Peoples Act, 1951, was amended to facilitate use of electronic voting machines in elections. Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were first used in November, 1998 in various constituencies in the State elections of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi. EVMs have been widely used in the Fifteenth Lok Sabha Elections in 2009.
5. Booth Capturing:
Section 58A has been inserted in the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1951 by Act 1 of 1989 providing for adjournment of poll or countermanding of elections because of booth capturing. Booth capturing has been defined in Section 135 A of the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1951.
Election Commission on such report may either declare the poll at the particular polling station as void and appoint a date for fresh poll or countermand election in that constituency.
6. Disqualification on Conviction under the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971:
Any conviction under 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 shall hereafter entail disqualification for contesting elections to Parliament and State Legislatures for a period of six years from the date of such conviction.
7. Increase in Security Deposits and Number of Prosposers:
The amount of security deposit which a candidate at an election to the House of the People or a State Legislative Assembly has to make has been enhanced as a measure to check the multiplicity of non-serious candidates.
In the case of an election to the House of the People, the amount of security deposit has been increased from Rs. 500 to Rs. 10,000 for the general candidate and from Rs 250 to Rs. 5,000 for a candidate who is a member of a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe.In the case of elections to a State Legislative Assembly, the candidates will have to make a deposit of Rs. 5,000 if they are. general candidates and Rs. 2,500 if they belong to a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe instead of Rs. 250 and Rs. 125 respectively as was being previously deposited by them.
The amended law further provides that the nomination of a candidate in a Parliamentary or Assembly constituency should be subscribed by 10 electors of the constituency as prospers, if the candidate has not been set up by a recognised National or State Party.
8. Restriction on Contesting Election from More than Two Constituencies:
A candidate shall hereafter not be eligible to contest election from more than two Parliamentary or Assembly constituencies at a general election or at the bye-elections which are held simultaneously. Similar restrictions will apply for biennial-elections and bye-elections to the Council of States and State legislative councils.
9. Listing of Names of Candidates:
For the purpose of listing of names of candidates, they shall be classified as (i) candidates of recognised political parties, (ii) candidates of registered- unrecognised political parties, and (iii) other (independent) candidate. Their names in the list of contesting candidates and in the ballot papers will now appear separately in the above order and in each category they will be arranged in alphabetical order.
10. Death of a Candidate:Previously, the election was countermanded on the death of a contesting candidate. In future, no election will be countermanded on the death of a contesting candidate. If the deceased candidate, however, was set up by a recognised National or State party, the party concerned will be given an option to nominate another candidate within seven days of the issue of a notice to that effect to the party concerned by the Election Commission.