THE GENERAL ELECTIONS 2014

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2 THE GENERAL ELECTIONS 2014

3 Published in 2015 by the Election Commission of India Nirvachan Sadan, Ashoka Road, New Delhi Text Copyright Election Commission of India Photographs and Illustrations Copyright Election Commission of India All rights reserved. This publication is not for sale. No part of the publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the Election Commission of India, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published. Printed in India by I.G. Printers, New Delhi ii

4 CONTENTS PAGE 1. STATISTICS AT A GLANCE 1 2. THE VICTORY OF DEMOCRACY 2 3. PLANNING THE ELECTIONS CONSTITUTIONAL MANDATE THE MODEL CODE OF CONDUCT DESTINATION POLLING STATION THE FINAL COUNTDOWN TRAINING THE DEMOCRATIC FORCES A CLEAN SVEEP USE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY & EVMs EXPENDITURE CONTROL A FITTING CONCLUSION 130 iii

5 DEMOCRACY MUST, IN ESSENCE, MEAN THE ART AND SCIENCE OF MOBILISING THE ENTIRE PHYSICAL, ECONOMIC AND SPIRITUAL RESOURCES OF ALL THE VARIOUS SECTIONS OF THE PEOPLE, IN THE SERVICE OF THE COMMON GOOD OF ALL. MAHATMA GANDHI The main inspiration for this book came from the Hon ble President of India, Mr Pranab Mukherjee, when the Commission met him in May 2014 to present the Due Constitution Notification of the 2014 Lok Sabha Elections. The President expressed the desire for a book to be prepared and published expeditiously by the Election Commission, based on the past and present experiences of the conduct of elections in the country. The Election Commission of India is proud to present this book to him. iv

6 The Commission presents the Due Constitution Notification of the 2014 Lok Sabha Elections, with the list of all the winning candidates, to the President of India From left to right: Dr Nasim Zaidi, Election Commissioner; Mr V.S. Sampath, Chief Election Commissioner; the Hon ble President of India, Mr Pranab Mukherjee; Mr H.S. Brahma, Election Commissioner v

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8 STATISTICS AT A GLANCE Total Population : 1.2 billion Total Area : 3.3 million km 2 Number of Electors : 834,082,814 (compared to 173,212,343 in ) Male Voters : 437,035,372 Female Voters : 397,018,915 Third Gender : 28,527 Youth (18-19) : 13,430,193 Total No. of Polling Stations : 9,27,553 Total No. of Assembly Constituencies at Present : 4,120 Rajya Sabha : Not more than 250 (243 at present); 12 members are nominated by the President under Article 80 of the Constitution Lok Sabha : 543 members plus 2 members of the Anglo-Indian community, nominated by the President under Article 331 of the Constitution Total Participated in 2014 polls National Parties : 6 6 State Recognised Parties : Registered Unrecognised Parties : 1, Total No. of Political Parties : 1, Total No. of Candidates : 8,251 Highest Ever Turnout of Voters : 66.44% (against 58.19% in 2009) crore voters (against crore in 2009) Percentage Increase (2014 against 2009) : 32.71% Total Male Turnout : 67.00% (Postal Ballots not included) Total Female Turnout : 65.54% (Postal Ballots not included) Gender Gap Reduction: : 1.55 percentage points (4.42 in 2009) 1

9 THE VICTORY OF DEMOCRACY In keeping with its mandate, the Election Commission of India (ECI) introduced reforms and launched new initiatives in the 2014 General Elections. But what is the history of the elections and the Election Commission itself? How did the process come to be crystallised decades ago when the nation was new and its democracy was nascent? Here are the highlights. a democratic country, the word IN election symbolises the active and direct participation of the people of a nation to form a Government. It is universally accepted that for a democracy to work as one, its citizens elect their representatives and, in turn, rule themselves. The elections represent the general will of the people, as expressed in their votes. The voting population expresses its choice of candidate, political party and Government through exercising their franchise at regular intervals. The votes of the electors crystallise into the mandate of the people. Elections are held in our country every five years (the only exception is the six-year term of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly). By exercising their franchise, voters express their changing expectations and convictions regarding the kind of Government they want. The voters are the main stakeholders in a democracy and they vote with the belief that the Government, as the main arbiter of the future of the country and its people, will provide every citizen the best possible policies to build a better country, a better community, and a better life. They also believe that it will work in the most efficient way to further their economic and social welfare, alleviate poverty and reduce the gap between the rich and the poor, build infrastructure, and formulate and implement policies that will ultimately improve the quality of life 2

10 of every citizen, reduce the existing differences between different sections of society to make the social order as egalitarian as possible, maintain law and order, and protect the legal rights and civil liberties of the citizens. The legitimacy of the entire democratic system of governance depends on the efficacy and effective working of the electoral mechanism. If the verdict of the people, which forms the basis of the propreity and legitimacy of the political system, is vitiated by unethical methods, the faith of the people in the electoral system gets eroded and ultimately destroys the very foundations of democracy. In elections, voting is a primary manifestation of democratic behaviour. It creates and preserves the authenticity and credibility of democracy. An electorate of informed and politically and socially aware citizens, determined to exercise their right to vote wisely, are equipped to build the right environment for a free and fair elections. Democracy and elections are inextricable. In the Indian context the emphasis has always been on creating a social order in which the people, by casting their vote without any coercion or inducement, make decisions about their Government. India s struggle for independence was as much for freedom from colonial rule as it was for establishing a democracy. When the country became independent on 15 August 1947, planning and organising the General Elections to elect a representative Government on the basis of universal adult suffrage was one of the top priorities. In order to achieve this, Article 289 of the draft constitution (later changed to Article 324 on the adoption of the Constitution), for the setting up of the Election Commission of India (ECI) as an independent constitutional authority, was made effective along with Articles 4 to 9 (regarding citizenship) from 26 November 1949, two months before the Constitution was finally adopted by we the people of India on 26 January

11 The ECI had been created as an independent constitutional authority to protect and safeguard this newborn democracy by facilitating free and fair elections that allowed people to choose their Government. The august body of the Constituent Assembly prudently ensured that the election machinery should not be in the control of the executive government. Article 324 enjoins upon the ECI, the superintendence, direction and control of the elections to the Parliament and the Legislatures of the States. The ECI was formally constituted on 25th January 1950, a day before India became a Sovereign, Secular, Democratic Republic. Mr Sukumar Sen, ICS, was appointed the first Chief Election Commissioner on 21 March The original proposal under Article 289 was that there should be one Election Commission to deal with the elections to the Central Legislature, both the Upper and Lower Houses, and that there should be a separate Election Commission for each Province and each State to be appointed by the Governor or the Ruler of the State. However, a change was made to avoid any unfairness as it was thought to be impractical to put the elections into the hands of provincial authorities. Some of the members of the Constituent Assembly expressed their concerns that injustices might ensue from a provincial Election Commission with regard to people not belonging racially, linguistically or culturally to that particular region. Therefore, in collective wisdom, it was decided that the entire election machinery be put into the hands of a Central Commission. The ECI functioned as a singlemember body until 16 October 1989, when it was made a three-member body. This continued until 1 January 1990, at which time it once again became a single-member entity. Later on, since 1 October 1993, the ECI has been functioning as a threemember body. Through the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC), expenditure monitoring measures, sustained Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation (SVEEP) activities, the dissemination of affidavits of the candidates on the ECI portal and many other steps, the ECI builds up the well-informed voters and free and fair environs for the elections. These measures aim to ensure that the voting populace s voting and, thus, decision-making is not influenced by money, media and muscle power. The ECI constantly works to ensure the voting rights of everyone in general and of the weaker sections 4

12 of society, the marginalized groups, the women, the minorities, the third genders, the homeless and also ethnic communities, in particular. The Constitution of India mandates the ECI to hold free and fair elections. The constitutional articles of empowerment are as below: Article 324: Superintendence, direction and control of elections to be vested in an Election Commission. (1) The superintendence, direction and control of the preparation of the electoral rolls for, and the conduct of, all elections to Parliament and to the Legislature of every State and of elections to the offices of President and Vice-President held under this Constitution 5*** shall be vested in a Commission (referred to in this Constitution as the Election Commission). (2) The Election Commission shall consist of the Chief Election Commissioner and such number of other Election Commissioners, if any, as the President may from time to time fix and the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners shall, subject to the provisions of any law made in that behalf by Parliament, be made by the President. (3) When any other Election Commissioner is so appointed, the Chief Election Commissioner shall act as the Chairman of the Election Commission. (4) Before each general election to the House of the People and to the Legislative Assembly of each State, and before the first general election and thereafter before each biennial election to the Legislative Council of each State having such Council, the President may also appoint after consultation with the Election Commission such Regional Commissioners as he may consider necessary to assist the Election Commission in the performance of the functions conferred on the Commission by clause (1). The first Election Commissioner, Mr Sukumar Sen, ICS 5

13 (5) Subject to the provisions of any law made by Parliament, the conditions of service and tenure of office of the Election Commissioners and the Regional Commissioners shall be such as the President may by rule determine: Provided that the Chief Election Commissioner shall not be removed from his office except in like manner and on the like grounds as a Judge of the Supreme Court and the conditions of service of the Chief Election Commissioner shall not be varied to his disadvantage after his appointment: Provided further that any other Election Commissioner or a Regional Commissioner shall not be removed from office except on the recommendation of the Chief Election Commissioner. (6) The President, or the Governor 1*** of a State, shall, when so requested by the Election Commission, make available to the Election Commission or to a Regional Commissioner such staff as may be necessary for the discharge of the functions conferred on the Election Commission by clause (1). 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. There shall be one general electoral roll for every territorial constituency for election to either House of Parliament or to the House or either House of the Legislature of a State and no person shall be ineligible for inclusion in any such roll or claim to be included in any special electoral roll for any such constituency on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex or any of them. Article 326: Elections to the House of the People and to the Legislative Assemblies of States to be on the basis of adult suffrage. The elections to the House of the People and to the Legislative Assembly of every State shall be on the basis of adult suffrage; that is to say, every person who 6

14 is a citizen of India and who is not less than eighteen years of age on such date as may be fixed in that behalf by or under any law made by the appropriate Legislature and is not otherwise disqualified under this Constitution or any law made by the appropriate Legislature on the ground of non-residence, unsoundness of mind, crime or corrupt or illegal practice, shall be entitled to be registered as a voter at any such election. At the start, the minimum age of voting was 21 years; this was changed to 18 years with the Sixty-first Amendment Act, Article 327: Power of Parliament to make provision with respect to elections to Legislatures. Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, Parliament may from time to time by law make provision with respect to all matters relating to, or in connection with, election to either House of Parliament or to the House or either House of the Legislature of a State including the preparation of electoral rolls, the delimitation of constituencies and all other matters necessary for securing the due constitution of such House or Houses. Article 328: Power of Legislature of a State to make provision with respect to elections to such Legislature. Subject to the provisions of this Constitution and in so far as provision in that behalf is not made by Parliament, the Legislature of a State may from time to time by law make provision with respect to all matters relating to, or in connection with, the elections to the House or either House of the Legislature of the State including the preparation of electoral rolls and all other matters necessary for securing the due constitution of such House or Houses. Electoral integrity is concerned with open dialogue, debate and information-sharing among leaders and the public. This depends on public confidence in electoral and political processes. Inclusiveness, transparency and accountability are tenets fundamental to developing the confidence of the voters in the electoral process. The four main tenets of a fair election process are: 1. Universal suffrage 2. Periodicity of election (i.e. prefixed term of the Lok Sabha/ Legislative Assembly) 3. Independent election management bodies (EMBs) 4. Free, fair and transparent electoral process. 7

15 At the time of the first General Elections, one could not presume ahigh level of political and social awareness of the population, as a large percentage of the people were illiterate and with little access to the information that would help the voters to make their choice. Under such circumstances it became all-important for the election machinery to provide an equal opportunity to all to participate in the democratic process. Before the first General Election to the Lok Sabha, in , the first delimitation order was issued by the President in consultation with the ECI, and after the approval of the Parliament on 13 August The Parliament passed the first Act to build a legal framework for the election on 12 May 1950 (Representation of the People Act, 1950). It dealt mainly with the preparation of electoral rolls. The second Act on 17 July 1951 (Representation of the People Act, 1951) laid down the procedure for the conduct of elections to both the Houses of Parliament and the Vidhan Sabhas of each State. By 15 November 1951, the electoral rolls for the first General Elections were ready. The total number of voters enrolled in the whole of India (excluding Jammu and Kashmir) was 173,212,343. Of these, approximately 45 per cent were women voters. The total population of India (excluding Jammu and Kashmir), according to the 1951 Census was 356,691,760. The first General Elections were held between October 1951 and March The first Lok Sabha, with 489 members, was constituted on 2 April The elections were spread over four months and 68 polling days. After the constitution of the two Houses of Parliament and the State Legislative Assemblies, the first Presidential election was held in May 8

16 1952 and the President assumed office on 13 May At the time of the first General Elections in ,the ECI had recognised 14 political parties as multi-state political parties and 39 parties as State parties.voting in the first and second General Elections in and then in 1957 respectively, was based on the balloting system. A commendable feature of the Indian elections has been the active participation of women. The freedom movement had seen Indian women fight shoulder to shoulder with men against British rule. Therefore, it was quite natural that in independent India women were given democratic rights on par with men. However, this was remarkable, as the Suffrage Movement, helped on by the work of women in the First World War, had got British women the right to vote only in In the USA, women earned the right to vote by the 19th Amendment as late as in 1920, and women were specifically protected from discrimination in Civil Rights in CONSTITUENCIES Constituencies are the contesting venues in the elections and the voting base for the candidates. At present, there are 543 constituencies in India. Their sizes have been determined by the Delimitation Commission, which creates constituencies on the basis of population, subject to geographical considerations and the boundaries of the States and administrative areas. Under Article 82 of the Constitution, the Parliament enacts a Delimitation Act after every census. After it comes into force, the Central Government constitutes a Delimitation Commission. This Commission sets the boundaries or limits of the Parliamentary Constituencies based on the Delimitation Act. The current delimitation of constituencies has been done on the basis of the 2001 Census figures under the provisions of Delimitation Act, The Constitution of India was specifically amended in 2002 not to have delimitation of constituencies till the first census after So the present constituencies shall continue to be in operation until then. 9

17 THE FIRST BIG STEP The first elections laid the foundation of a democratic nation and for future elections. The elections were held with all those 21 years of age or older having the right to vote. There were as many as 173,212,343 voters, most of them poor, illiterate and rural, and having had no experience of any kind of election exercise. The big challenge at that time was: What kind of response would it get from the people? How would they respond to this opportunity? Scepticism was rife about the people of this nascent nation being able to take politically mature and responsible decisions. However, the system was already maturing. India s electoral system, developed according to the directives of the Constitution, had provided for an Election Commission, independent of the executive, or the Parliament, or the party in power. The organisation of the first ever elections in India was a mammoth task. A house-to-house survey was conducted to register the voters. As more than 70 per cent of the voters were illiterate, the candidates had to be identified by symbols that were assigned to each major political party and independent candidates, and displayed on the ballot boxes. The voters were to place the ballot papers in the box assigned to a particular candidate, and the ballot was secret. In the first General Elections, voters had to cast their vote in ballot boxes assigned for each candidate all photos on this page courtesy the photo division of india 10

18 As many as 196,084 polling stations were set up throughout the length and breadth of the country, of which 27,527 were exclusively reserved for women. Of the over 173 million electorate, 105,950,083 voted. The polling booths, one for almost every 1,000 voters, were built and equipped with more than 2.5 million steel ballot boxes, with a box for every candidate. Nearly 620,000,000 ballot papers were printed. About a million election officials supervised the conduct of the polls. It was not necessary for the winning candidate to have a majority; just the highest number of votes would be enough for victory. In all, candidates of more than 14 national and 63 regional or local parties, and a large number of independents contested 489 seats for the Lok Sabha and 3,283 seats for the State Assemblies. Of these, 98 seats for the former and 669 for the latter were reserved for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. Nearly 17,500 candidates in all stood for the seats to the Lok Sabha and the State Legislatures. After the votes were counted and results declared, the first House of the People was constituted by the ECI on 2 April The ballot papers for the first General Elections were printed by the ECI at the Government of India Security Press at Nashik, Maharashtra, where the country s currency notes were also printed. 11

19 BALLOT BRIEFS The first elections in India were conducted with universal adult suffrage as the basic tenet and the first past the post system. Normally, voting would have consisted of the voter recording his or her preference for the candidate of his or her choice on the ballot paper or a voting machine that contained the names of the contesting candidates. But in the 1950s literacy was only around 16.6 per cent, and it would have been impossible for voters to mark their votes against names. Ballot boxes were used for the first time during General Elections to the House of the People and State Legislative Assemblies held in As per Rule 28 of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, every ballot box used in election must be of the design approved by the ECI. The ECI decided that all ballot boxes should be made of steel and with an inbuilt locking system so that no separate locks were required for sealing and securing them. The ECI had approved the design of ballot boxes of 12 manufacturing firms and gave the option to the State Governments to select and purchase from them. 25,84,945 ballot boxes were purchased for the first time 12

20 during General Elections to the House of the People and State Legislative Assemblies held in The last time ballot boxes were used was in the bye-elections to the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly held in September, 2010, as the number of contesting candidates was more than 64. However, ballot boxes are still used in elections to the Office of the President of India, the Office of the Vice President of India, the Council of States (Rajya Sabha) and Legislative Councils. In the early 1950s, when the literacy level was only around 16.6 per cent, it would have been impossible for the majority of voters to mark their votes on ballot papers with the names of the candidates printed on them. A system that was suitable for all had to be devised. The easiest method seemed to be to assign a separate ballot box for 13

21 each candidate and to display his election symbol on that box so that voters could cast their votes by simply dropping their ballot papers into the ballot boxes assigned to the candidates of their choice. This system, called the Balloting System of voting, was adopted for the first two general elections to the House of the People held in and All ballot papers for the first General Elections held in were printed centrally by the ECI at the Government of India Security Press. The size of these ballot papers was 3-2/5" x 2". The design of the ballot papers for the second General Elections to House of the People and Assembly elections was revised by the ECI and two types of ballot papers were printed in different colours ( green for House of the People and white with a chocolate-coloured border for the Assembly Elections) and as an additional precaution, the names of the legislatures concerned were also printed on each ballot paper. The ntroduction of the Marking System of voting was discussed with national political parties in It had been decided that the new system would be tried on a limited scale in the bye-elections after the General Elections. Under the Marking System of voting, the ballot paper contains the names of all the contesting candidates and their election symbols, and the voters mark their ballot papers in secrecy. Pursuant to Rule 30 of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, the ECI had prescribed the following form and design of ballot papers: 14

22 (i) Every ballot paper shall have the counterfoil attached to it and have the particulars of the election, the electoral roll part no., the serial no. of the elector and so on. (ii) The front face of the ballot paper will contain the serial number and name of the constituency, and the particulars of election, the names of the contesting candidates and their election symbols. (iii) The size of each symbol will be not more than 9 em x 6 em. (iv) The ballot papers will be stitched into convenient bundles, with consecutive serial numbers. (v) The ballot papers for elections to the House of the People will be printed on white paper, and for the elections to the State Legislative Assemblies they would be printed on pink paper. The Marking System of voting was successfully tried out in a large number of byeelections from 1957 to Thereafter, the ECI decided to switch over to this system in the General Elections in 1962 in all States, except Manipur and in some inaccessible or backward areas of Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat and Punjab. The Marking System of voting became very popular and continued till the 1999 Lok Sabha Election. 15

23 ELECTION MILESTONES 25 January 1950 The Election Commission of India is established a day before the country became a sovereign republic. The ECI could be a single- or multi-member body. On 21 March, Sukumar Sen, ICS, was appointed as the first CEC The first General Elections. At that time, there were 314 constituencies with one seat, 86 with two seats, and one with three seats. There were also 2 nominated Anglo-Indian members February-14 March, 1957 There were 494 seats elected using the first past the post voting system. Out 3 of the 403 constituencies, 91 elected two members, while the remaining 312 elected a single member. The multi-seat constituencies were abolished before the next election February, 1962 Unlike the previous two elections but as with all subsequent elections, each constituency elected a single member. The Marking System of voting was used in all States, except Manipur, and some areas of Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat and Punjab ECIL was assigned the task of creating an electronic voting machine EVM) suited to Indian election conditions. 5 16

24 The EVMs, which are now pivotal to elections in India, were first used in 50 polling stations of Kerala s Parur Assembly constituency in May However, the machines could not be used after 1983 following a Supreme Court order that necessitated legal backing for their use. 16 October 1989 For the first time, two ECs and one CEC were appointed by the President. This was a short-lived arrangement January 1990 The ECI again became a singlemember body. 1 October 1993 The Commisson again became a three-member body (CEC Mr T.N. Seshan, and two ECs: Mr M.S. Gill and Mr G.V.G Krishnamurthy) On 8 October 2010, the ECI appointed an expert technical committee, and political parties backed the proposal to have VVPAT in EVMs to counter the charges of tampering The ECI conducted the largest exercise in democracy: the Lok Sabha Elections

25 STAYING AHEAD The Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail is an independent system attached with the EVMs that allows the voters to verify that their votes are cast as intended. When a vote is cast, a slip is printed and remains exposed through a transparent window for seven seconds, showing the serial number, name and symbol of the candidate. Thereafter, the receipt automatically gets cut and falls into the sealed dropbox of the VVPAT. The system allows a voter to challenge his/her vote on the basis of the paper receipt. As per rules, the Presiding Officer of the polling booth will have to record the dissent of the voter,, which would have to be taken into account at the time of counting, if the challenge is found to be false. The law for using VVPATs was amended in August In 2013, the Supreme Court of India had permitted the ECI to introduce VVPAT in a phased manner, calling it an indispensable requirement of free and fair elections. The Court had felt that introducing VVPAT would ensure the accuracy of the voting system and also help in mannual counting of votes in case of dispute. VVPATs were first used in bye-election to the 51-Noksen (ST) Assembly Constituency of Nagaland held in September Thereafter, VVPATs have been used in selected constituencies during every General Election to State Legislative Assemblies. VVPATs were used in eight selected Parliamentary Constituencies in the country in the 2014 Lok Sabha Election. EVMs with VVPAT ensure the accuracy and transparency of the voting system. In 2014, for the first time, voters had a None of the Above option on the ballot papers and EVMs. In 2001, the ECI had sent a proposal to the Government to amend the law so as to provide for a neutral vote provision for the electors who did not wish to vote for any of the candidates. In 2004, PUCL (People s Union for Civil Liberties) filed a petition seeking a direction to provide the necessary provision in ballot papers and EVMs for protection of the right to not vote for any candidate, secretly. The Supreme Court in 2013 held that the ECI may provide for the None of the Above (NOTA) option on EVMs and ballot papers. The sheer magnitude of the elections is a challenging operation, with more 18

26 than 834 million eligible electors spread across a country that is diverse in terms of ethnicity, religion, language and culture. It is also a country that throws up geographical, meteorological and demographic challenges in every region. Right at the beginning, the preparation of the electoral rolls is a colossal, painstaking task that has to be executed meticulously, while dealing with the sheer size and volume of the electorate, differences in administrative patterns across the country, the lack of awareness among the electors and political parties, illiteracy among a large number of electors, leading to the inability to even spell their own names, the heavy incidence of elector migration, the lack of knowledge of the correct procedure to be followed and last, but not least, technologyrelated problems. The first and foremost challenge is the vast numbers of electors for whom the electoral rolls are to be prepared. Note this: The total population of the USA, UK and Canada is less than the total female population of India. The delimitation of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies across the country presented the electoral machinery with an opportunity to test the validity and reliability of the electoral roll data as well as the technical competence acquired in the field of roll and database management. The conversion of data from pre-delimited constituencies to post-delimitation constituencies was possible only because the electoral machinery has been able to develop the technical expertise to handle the massive electoral database using technology. In recent times, a number of voter-friendly services have been launched to help the electors. Two of these are telephone helplines/call centres and SMS-based helplines to provide information as also ATMtype touch-screen information kiosks at conveniently located public places. Internet-based search facilities are also provided. Under instructions from the ECI, another user-friendly initiative has been the setting up of help desks at polling premises with three or more polling stations. The operational challenges of an electoral exercise involving 29 States and 7 UTs are evident. They require long and sustained planning in a systematic manner and the continuous interaction of the various workers and officials through workshops, meetings and conferences for information and instruction to travel down right to the smallest unit involved in the conduct of the electoral process. The ECI has both a preventive and enforcement role. It has to ensure that its electoral machinery and conduct inspires faith in every elector. 19

27 PLANNING THE ELECTIONS The planning for an election in a country as big and populous as India is a task that requires meticulous planning at both the macrolevel and the micro-level. Not only that, it requires complete and harmonious synchronisation of many activities, events and exercises that have to happen in tandem, or in the correct sequence, and with complete efficiency and transparency. planning for the 2014 THE General Elections involved a very elaborate, detailed and complex preparation process. A wide range of consultations were held with all the stakeholders, viz., political parties, Central Ministries (including Home Affairs, Defence, Telecommunications and Railways) the election management machinery (Chief Electoral Officers and other officers of all States and Union Territories), State Governments and the Administration of the Union Territories. For a free and fair election process, accurate and error-free electoral rolls are the most important prerequisite. Some of the electoral malpractices, such as bogus voting and impersonations, can be attributed largely to defective or incomplete electoral rolls. For ensuring the maximum participation of electors in the electoral process and reducing electoral malpractices, it is essential to follow rigorous registration processes to enhance the fidelity of the electoral rolls. The poor quality of electoral rolls is certain to undermine free and fair elections. Therefore, much emphasis is laid on the preparation and revision of these rolls, besides the involvement of the voters in the electoral process. Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) are instructed to be thorough with the laws and procedures regarding the preparation and revision of the electoral rolls as they may perform quasi-judicial functions 20

28 in the matter of disposal of claims and objections. Any erroneous application of law affects the accuracy of the rolls and, ultimately, the purity of the elections. The electoral roll of a constituency is a list of all those people in that constituency who are registered to vote in the elections. Only those people whose names are there in the electoral rolls are allowed to vote as electors. The electoral roll is normally revised every year to add the names of those who are not less than 18 years as on the first day of January of that year, or have moved into the constituency, and to remove the names of those who have died or moved out of the constituency. The updating of electoral rolls is a continuous process, which is interrupted only at the time of the elections during the period from after the last date of filing nominations till the completion of the elections. The administrative machinery involved in the preparation, maintenance and revision of the electoral rolls has the ECI at the top of the hierarchy. Under Section 13AA of the Representation of the People (R.P.) Act, 1950, a Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) is appointed in each State/Union Territory (UT), who is an officer of the Government, designated or nominated by the ECI in consultation with the State/UT Government. The CEO supervises the preparation and revision of electoral rolls of all the constituencies in the State/UT. Section 13AA of the R.P. Act, 1950, also provides for the appointment of a District Election Officer (DEO) in each district, who is an officer of the Government. Generally, the District Collectors/ District Magistrates/Deputy Commissioners are designated as the DEOs of their Districts, barring some exceptions due to administrative 21

29 reasons. According to Section 13B of the R.P. Act, 1950, the electoral roll for each constituency in a State/ UT is be prepared and revised by an Electoral Registration Officer (ERO). Generally, Civil Service/Revenue Officials are appointed as the EROs. Further, Section 13C of the R.P. Act provides for the appointment of one or more persons as Assistant Electoral Registration Officers (AEROs) to assist the EROs in the performance of their functions. The AEROs are competent to perform all the functions of the EROs, subject to the control of the respective EROs. Under Rules 20, 21, or 21A of the Registration of Electors (R.E.) Rules, 1960, an appeal filed during the process of preparation or revision of the electoral rolls shall lie with an officer of the Government whom the ECI may designate under Rule 23 of the R.E. Rules, The Deputy Commissioners/District Magistrates/ District Collectors are normally appointed as the Appellate Officers. After the final publication of the electoral rolls, an appeal against any order of the ERO, under Section 22 or 23 of the R.P. Act, 1950, lies with the CEO. This is provided under Section 24 of the R.P. Act, 1950, and Rule 27 of the R.E. Rules, In addition to the above statutory appointments, a required numbers of designated officers are also appointed by the ERO under Rule 14 of the R.E. Rules, The designated officer displays the electoral rolls and receives claims and objections. He/she also distributes Form 6, 7, 8 and 8A to the electors on demand. At the bottom of the hierarchy, Booth Level Officers (BLOs) and supervisors are also appointed under Section 13B(2) of the R.P. Act, 1950, who are serving (or in some cases, retired) officers of the Government or 22

30 local bodies. Each BLO has one or two polling stations under his/her jurisdiction. During the revision of the electoral rolls, BLOs may be assigned the tasks of enumeration, the verification of rolls and forms, and the collection of forms and photographs from the electors for EPIC and photo roll maximisation. BLOs hand over the forms thus collected to the designated officers and EROs for further action. During the time when continuous revision and upgrading is going on, BLOs may be used for the identification of dead and shifted voters on specified dates prescribed for the purpose by the ECI (one week in each half of a year). In an election year, a BLO s task begins with the publication of the draft rolls till the completion of the second Supplementary according to a specific programme approved by the ECI. Supervisory officers maintain checks on the quality of work done by the BLOs, and closely monitor it. Each Supervisory Officer has BLOs under his/her supervision. Apart from the machinery involved in the process of the preparation and revision of the electoral rolls, community participation has also been identified as one of the ways in which political parties can appoint their representatives as Booth Level Agents (BLAs) on the pattern of appointment of Polling Agents, to complement the task of BLOs. Normally, one BLA may be appointed for each part of the electoral roll. The BLA must be a registered elector in the relevant part of the draft electoral roll for which he/she is appointed, as it is expected that the BLA will scrutinise the entries in the draft roll of the area where 23

31 he/she resides, in order to identify the entries of dead persons and shifted persons. Before announcing the poll schedule for the 543 Parliamentary Constituencies on 5 March 2014 for the 2014 General Elections, the ECI had begun its planning in the preceding year with the commencement of the Summary Revision of polls. Core planning also began several months in advance, with a stream of consultations with all stakeholders, covering security, communications, transportation and other logistics, as well as for anticipating weather and other exigencies including school examinations and festivals. The ECI and its officials travelled extensively to the States and UTs to review the state of preparedness for the mega event and also for getting ground-level feedback from all. The scheduling of the General Elections is a very complex exercise, dependent on a set of factors that have to be taken into account for each of the 543 Parliamentary Constituencies. These included the availability of schools as polling stations, avoiding holidays and festivals as poll days, factoring in the examination schedule of the Central and State education boards, extreme weather conditions in different parts of the country, monsoon months, and local sensitivities. Security arrangements, especially in Left-Wing-Extremism- (LWE) affected areas, Jammu and Kashmir, and the North Eastern States were also taken into account. 24

32 The days/dates available for holding polls were very few and, even more importantly, they had to be cleared from all the aforementioned factors and angles. After all the intensive consultation rounds, a schedule was drawn with nine poll days, which was later extended to ten poll days due to a separate day inserted for the State of Mizoram. The first poll day was on 7 April 2014 and the last was on 12 May The Legislative Assembly elections for four States, viz., Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, were also held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha Elections. The Model Code of Conduct became effective immediately after the announcement of the election schedule by the ECI on 5 March, The election process starts with the issue of notification for the Parliamentary Constituencies and Assembly Constituencies. As per legal provisions, a period of seven days is provided for the filing of nominations after the notification is issued. The scrutiny of the nominations is carried out on the day following the last date for nominations. Thereafter, two days are provided for the withdrawal of nominations and the final list of candidates is prepared after the withdrawal. The campaign period is usually of 14 days or more, and this period comes to an end 48 hours before the close of the polls in the respective constituencies. Another important aspect is the deployment of poll personnel. This is done through a three-stage randomisation process, which is as follows: First Stage: At this stage, the purpose is to identify and select the required number of polling personnel for the District. In the appointment letter [in the prescribed format as given in the Handbook for Returning Officers (ROs)], the identity of the Assembly Constituency (AC) is not to be disclosed. Polling personnel will know whether he/she is a Presiding Officer (PrO) or a Polling Officer (PO), the venue and time of training. The presence of Observers is not required at this stage. Second Stage: Polling parties are formed at this stage. The AC may be known, but the actual polling station (PS) is not known. Observers must be present. This randomisation is not to be done before 6/7 days from the day of the poll. Third Stage: At the time of the dispersal of the polling party, the allocation of the PS is done. The 25

33 presence of Observers is a must and the certificate regarding the formation of polling parties on the basis of the three-stage randomisation process needs to be given by the DEO to the ECI and separately to the CEO. In the 2014 General Elections, the arrangements at the polling stations were reviewed and instructions were issued to have a minimum guaranteed environ at the polling stations, comprising certain Basic Minimum Facilities (BMF) such as drinking water, shade/shelter, light, ramps and so on. The voting compartment was standardised for all States and UTs by issuing instructions to set them up in such a way that the secrecy of the ballot was not compromised and prohibited materials such as jute bags and plastic sheets were not used. The poll timings were extended by an hour across the country to facilitate greater participation in the summer-time elections: this meant that voters could cast their ballot from 7 am to 6 pm as against the timing followed in the previous General Elections (from 7 am to 5 pm). Out of more than 1,600 political parties registered with the ECI, only 464 had fielded candidates for contesting the elections. There were 8,251 candidates whose nominations were accepted by the respective ROs. The candidates included the political parties nominees as well as a large number of Independent candidates. Engagement of technology in all parts of the polling process was a distinctive feature of the 2014 General Elections. This included webcasting from a large number of polling stations to get a first-hand picture of the polling stations, especially in vulnerable areas. The concept of Vulnerability 26

34 Mapping was followed by identifying vulnerable areas, hamlets and pockets, along with the identification of vulnerable persons and of the intimidators, in order to cast a safety net around vulnerable persons and to track intimidators. The security plan was drawn for the sealing of interstate and inter-district borders well in advance to prevent infiltration of antisocial and disruptive elements. Men and material mobilisation was, understandably, a challenge. There were challenges of terrain, inclement weather, absence of transport links and the threat of extremists at some places. Robust security measures were ensured in every part of the election process and particularly in vulnerable areas so that no voter would face any intimidation. Security personnel from various Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) were deployed and required to be on constant move across the country during the elections. From jets to boats, from mules to camels, all were pressed into service. Polling officials carrying heavy materials on their backs and walking several days by foot was not an unusual sight. Men and materials for polling were promptly in place, whether in snowy mountains, islands, dense forests or barren deserts, whether for crowded urban centres or in polling stations for a handful of voters, or even for a single voter. A sound communication system was put in place and complaint redressal mechanisms were always on the ready. On the day of the polls, the polling officials at each polling station have to follow a checklist of activities to be performed by them for the efficient conduct of the poll, which include the conduct of mockpolls, the verification of agents of political parties/candidates, setting up facilitation desks for voters assistance, providing security to the electors and polling personnel at the polling stations;, the conduct of polls, the sealing of polled EVMs, securing the EVM strong rooms and the submission of statutory forms, duly filled up by the polling parties, among other duties. As part of the security measures, the safe return of the polling parties and the polled EVMs is also given high importance by the ECI. The safe passage of all the polling parties from the polling stations to the collection centres is ensured. Every vote counts in a democracy, so the counting process has to be secure and foolproof. After the voting process, the EVMs were stored in strong rooms, which were 24x7 under the watchful eyes of security forces and candidates or their representatives, and were unsealed 27

35 only on the counting day 16 May Observers were deployed by the ECI to oversee the entire counting process. Votes in each machine were counted in the presence of the Observers, the candidates, the representatives of political parties and the media. The results were declared within a few hours of the commencement of counting all over the country. Following that, the Due Constitution Notification of the Lok Sabha, consisting of the names of all the winning candidates, was presented to the Hon ble President of India by the Chief Election Commissioner and the Election Commissioners, on 18 May, 2014, i.e., within 48 hours of the declaration of the results. Security is integral to the conduct of peaceful and impartial elections and it is an inseparable part of the electoral process. During the 2014 General Election, the onus of ensuring free and fair elections was on the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) as they are considered to be free from local influences. The personnel of the State Police and Central Police Forces stand deputed to the ECI and they come under its superintendence, direction and control for all purposes during this period. The security arrangements and custodianship of delivering free and fair elections also becomes very challenging given the massive electorate spread across vast regions and often amid extremely daunting factors. Threat perceptions existed manifold during the 2014 Lok Sabha Election including the prevalent Left-Wing extremism in some parts of the country, the situation in Jammu and Kashmir and certain parts of the North East, overall communally sensitive situations, pollrelated caste and sectarian violence, and threat perception to prominent leaders during the campaign period. Keeping this in mind, the designing of the poll schedule and 28

36 the multi-phase elections followed the logic of force availability and mobilisation. Security management on poll days as well as during the campaign period is given high importance. The following strategies were adopted for different areas: Left-Wing Extremism Areas: A longer timeframe and strategically planned early elections are required here. Jammu and Kashmir: The provision for staggered polls is a time-tested approach here. It was kept on a separate orbit covering all phases. The North East: Apart from festivals and pre-monsoons, security is a major consideration for this region. The ECI took measures to maintain law and order, including preventive actions and special drives to update lists of history sheeters, executing non-bailable warrants, expediting decisions on pending election-related cases, unearthing of illicit liquor, seizure of illegal arms and ammunition, prohibitory orders, checking and deposition of licensed arms, ban on the issuing of new arms, setting up of check posts to monitor the movement of illegal arms, antisocial elements, cash and liquor, and preventive and daily law and order reports, among others. The ECI undertook an elaborate exercise to assess the national availability of Central and State Security forces, and the requirements posed by different States and UTs for Central Forces. As the demand is usually higher than the availability, the ECI ensured full optimisation of the State Security Forces, comprising the State Armed Police (SAP), Home Guards, the District Police and so on. The ECI emphasised having a system 29

37 in place to avail of data regarding force multipliers. A very close coordination with the Ministry of Home Affairs was maintained throughout, as well as with the Heads of the different security agencies. A set of consolidated instructions for the deployment of the Forces was issued. The ECI also issued directions for force multipliers, among others. A very detailed National Plan for the movement and deployment of the Forces was drawn in consultation with the Chief Coordinator of the CAPFs and the Indian Railways. The ECI reviewed the deployment and movement of the forces regularly and closely monitored the implementation of the plan. The role of the security forces starts much before poll day and ends only after the declaration of the results, after the counting of votes. PRE-POLL CAPFs arrive in advance for area domination. Flag marches, as well as extensive patrolling and other confidencebuilding measures. The provision of an area-wise list of antisocial elements for spot verification of their whereabouts, presence and activities. Interaction with the local population to enhance public confidence. POLL DAY Guarding polling stations, polling material, poll personnel and the poll process. Guarding trouble spots. Patrolling duty on assigned routes covering an identified cluster of polling stations. Patrolling duty as flying squads in a defined area, with an element of surprise. Escort duty of polled EVMs. POST-POLL Guard duty of polled EVMs till the counting process is over. Ensuring the maintenance of law and order for victory processions of the winning candidate. Robust security measures were ensured in every part of the election process and more especially in vulnerable areas so that there was no intimidation of any voter. Security personnel from various forces were deployed and on constant move across the country during the 10 poll days of the elections. The Indian Railways lent valuable support in the movement and care of the forces. The Indian Air Force (IAF) provided helicopter services for air-lifting the security and polling personnel to and from polling stations 30

38 not reachable by any other means, whether in geographically difficult terrain, inclement weather conditions, across long distances or in Left-wing- Extremism-affected areas. The highlights of the security arrangements were: 1,349 Companies of the CAPFs were deployed from the beginning till the end. They were used from one poll day to the other, thus having a Force Multiplier Effect, raising the overall number of Companies to 8,087. As many as 76 helicopters of the IAF were deployed to airlift security personnel, polling personnel and polling material. 1,516 sorties were performed by the helicopters. Air Ambulances were kept in readiness for meeting any eventuality at sensitive points a motivational force for the security personnel. 570 trains were organised for the movement of the CAPFs, polling and other personnel. As many as 932 special coaches were provided by the Indian Railways, with pantry facilities and sanitation staff. Arrangements were made for picking food packets of the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) from designated stations en route. 31

39 CONSTITUTIONAL MANDATE Setting up an exercise such as the elections presumes a set of rules and laws that provide the framework within which the processes are conducted in a fair and lawful manner. However, changing conditions and new situations, as well as suggestions from the people involved mean that the rules and regulations may be revised from time to time. Here is a peek into the legal aspects of election law and order. Constitution of India sets THE down laws for the ECI, but even they have been amended time and again. Litigation about election laws and rules has been a constant feature ever since the first General Election and the decisions on these have contributed to the quality of the conduct of elections. The issues on which reforms have been sought by the ECI are wide-ranging. Some of them are as follows: Constitutional protection for all members of the ECI and an independent Secretariat for the ECI The budget of the ECI The decriminalisation of politics Political party reforms The misuse of religion for electoral gain Making Paid News an electoral offence Government-sponsored advertisements Punitive action for electoral offences The campaign period False documentation and declarations Restriction on the number of seats from which one may contest Election petitions against even defeated candidates for corrupt practices The qualifying date for enrolment Expenditure ceilings Transfer of officers Counting of votes Report of contributions received by political parties The open ballot system in Legislative Council elections 32

40 1CONSTITUTIONAL PROTECTION FOR ALL MEMBERS OF THE ELECTION COMMISSION AND AN INDEPENDENT SECRETARIAT FOR THE ELECTION COMMISSION The ECI is now a three-member body comprising the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and two Election Commissioners (ECs). The ECs are at par with the CEC as far as the decision-making power is concerned. In order to ensure the independence of the ECI and to keep it insulated from all external pressure, clause(5) of Article 324 of the Constitution provides protection to the CEC. In the matter of removability from office, the CEC enjoys the same protection as is applicable to a Judge of the Supreme Court. However, the ECs do not have such protection. The Constitutional provision with regard to the ECs is that they shall not be removed from office except on the recommendation of the CEC. The ECI has put up a proposal to provide the same protection to the ECs as is available to the CEC in the matter of removability from office. This will strengthen the independence of the ECI. In the Constitution, the independence envisioned is for the institution and not for individuals. For ensuring the total independence of the ECI, it is important to provide the same protection to all its members. 33

41 2THE BUDGET OF THE ELECTION COMMISSION IS TO BE CHARGED The administrative expenditure of the ECI is a voted expenditure. The ECI has proposed that the expenditure of the ECI should be charged on the consolidated fund. A charged budget would also be symbolic of the independence of the ECI. The Government of India had accepted the ECI s proposal in 1994 and introduced a Bill titled the Election Commission (Charging of Expenses on the Consolidated Fund of India) Bill 1994, in the House of the People, but the Bill lapsed without being passed, on the dissolution of that House in AN INDEPENDENT SECRETARIAT FOR THE COMMISSION The ECI should have an independent Secretariat on the lines of the Lok Sabha, the Rajya Sabha and the Registries of the Supreme Court and High Courts. An independent Secretariat will enable the ECI to choose and appoint officials considered suitable by the ECI without any interference from the executive. 34

42 4DECRIMINALISATION OF POLITICS AND ELECTIONS In order to prevent persons with criminal backgrounds from becoming legislators, the ECI has proposed the disqualification (from contesting the election) of a person against whom charges have been framed by a Court for an offence punishable by imprisonment of five years or more. Under the existing law, there is a disqualification once a person is convicted and sentenced to imprisonment of two years or more. In the case of certain specified offences, conviction itself leads to disqualification, even without any sentence of imprisonment. The ECI s proposal is for disqualification even prior to conviction, provided the Court has framed charges. This would be a reasonable restriction aimed at keeping any person accused of serious criminal charges out of the electoral arena, in the larger public interest. As a precaution against foisting false cases on the eve of the elections, it was suggested that only those cases filed six months prior to an election be taken into account for that election. REFORMS CONCERNING 5 POLITICAL PARTIES CONTESTING THE ELECTIONS Under the law, any group of citizens can be registered as a political party with the ECI, by making an application, giving the required documents and other particulars. There are more than 1,500 registered unrecognised political parties besides more than 50 recognised political parties. A large number of registered unrecognised political parties do not seem to have a serious interest in contesting elections. There is no provision in the law to de-register such a defunct party. Section 29A of the R.P. Act, 1951, another clause may be introduced authorising the ECI to issue necessary orders regulating the registration and de-registration of political parties. The parties should be legally required to get their accounts audited annually and publish them in the public domain. This will bring about transparency in the fund-raising and expenditure by parties. should be given only for those parties that contest elections and win seats in the Parliament or State Legislature. 35

43 6THE MISUSE OF RELIGION FOR ELECTORAL GAIN The Liberhan Ayodhya Commission of Inquiry recommended, inter alia, that all complaints of misuse of religion for electoral gain should be speedily investigated by the ECI. The ECI has communicated its view that such investigations should be carried out by the investigating agencies of the State rather than by the ECI as the ECI does not have the wherewithal to conduct such investigations. A Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha in 1994 [R.P. (second amendment) Bill, 1994], in which an amendment was proposed providing for provision to question before a High Court, acts of misuse of religion by political parties. The Bill lapsed on the dissolution of the Lok Sabha in The ECI has suggested that the provisions proposed in that Bill should be considered again. AMENDMENT OF LAW TO MAKE 7 PAID NEWS AN ELECTORAL OFFENCE The ECI is of the view that Paid News is against the concept of a free and fair election. The public, in general, considers news reports as credible and truthful as compared to advertisements by political parties and candidates. However, paid news is masquerading as news and publishes advertisements in the garb of news items, totally misleading the electors into believing that it is objective reporting, when it is quite the opposite. exercise involves the use of unaccounted money and the under-reporting of election expenses in the accounts of the election expenditure of the candidates indulging in the malpractice. The ECI sees Paid News as a deceit that adversely affects contesting candidates and the electorate. amendment should be made in the R.P. Act, 1951, to provide therein publishing and abetting the publishing of Paid News for furthering the prospect of election of any candidate or for prejudicially affecting the prospect of election of any candidate as an electoral offence under chapter- III of Part-VII of the R.P. Act, 1951, with an exemplary punishment of a minimum of two years imprisonment. 36

44 THE ISSUE OF GOVERNMENT- 8 SPONSORED ADVERTISEMENTS The departments of the Government in power publish advertisements through print and electronic media about the achievements of the Government, and its new schemes and programmes. This lends undue advantage to the political party or parties in power, and could influence and drive electoral behaviour. For ensuring a level playing field in the elections for all contesting candidates and parties, the ECI has suggested that for six months before the date of expiry of the term of the House, there should be a ban on advertisements on the achievements of the Government. The ECI has also suggested that advertisements and dissemination of information on poverty alleviation and health-related schemes could be exempted from the ban. 37

45 9PUNISHMENT FOR ELECTORAL OFFENCES TO BE ENHANCED Undue influence and bribery at elections are electoral offences under Sections 171B and 171C, respectively, of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). These offences are non-cognizable offences, with punishment provision of one year s imprisonment, or a fine, or both. Under Section 171-G, publishing a false statement in connection with the election with an intent to affect the result of an election, is punishable with only a fine. Section 171 H provides that incurring or authorising expenditure for promoting C FOR CONSTITUENCIES the election prospects of a candidate is an offence. However, punishment for an offence under this Section is a meagre fine of `500. These punishments were provided long back. Considering the gravity of the offences, the punishments under all the four sections should be enhanced and these offences should be made cognizable. PROHIBITION OF CAMPAIGN 10 DURING THE LAST 48 HOURS prohibits electioneering activities by way of public meetings, public performance, processions, advertisements through cinematograph, television or similar apparatus, during the period of 48 hours before the time fixed for the conclusion of the poll. Political advertisements on television and radio are prohibited during these 48 hours under the above provisions. the print media, the political parties and candidates issue advertisements in newspapers during this period including on the day of the poll. to the print media also. A distorted advertisement in print media on the poll day leaves the other candidates with no opportunity to undo the damage

46 PUNISHMENT FOR A 11 FALSE AFFIDAVIT BY CANDIDATES Section-125A of the R.P. Act, 1951, provides that furnishing false information in the affidavit filed by the candidate is an offence punishable by imprisonment up to six months, or with a fine. The ECI has recommended that the punishment for a false affidavit should be enhanced to imprisonment of two years, and that this offence should be included in sub-section(1) of Section 8 of R.P. Act, 51, which will lead to disqualification on conviction irrespective of the sentence awarded. RESTRICTION ON THE 12 NUMBER OF SEATS FROM WHICH ONE MAY CONTEST According to the present law, [Sub- Section (7) of Section 33 of the R.P. Act, 1951], a person can contest a general election or a group of byeelections or biennial elections from a maximum of two constituencies. When a person contests from two seats and wins both, he/she vacates the seat in one of the constituencies, necessitating a bye-election at the AMENDMENT OF LAW TO PROVIDE 13FOR FILING OF AN ELECTION PETITION EVEN AGAINST DEFEATED CANDIDATES ON THE GROUND OF CORRUPT PRACTICE According to existing law, an election petition can be filed only for challenging an election. If a defeated candidate has indulged in a corrupt practice, there is no provision for an election petition or a declaration against such a candidate. be amended to provide for the filing of an election petition in cases of the commission of a corrupt practice by a losing candidate. The ECI has also suggested that the period by which the candidates are required to file their account of election expenses should be reduced to 20 days from the present 30 days, so that more time is available for others to scrutinise the accounts and to take the matter to the Court in election petitions regarding spending in excess of the ceiling. expense of the public exchequer. The ECI has proposed that the law be amended to provide that a person cannot contest from more than one constituency at a time. If not, then there should be a provision requiring a person who contests and wins the election from two seats, resulting in a bye-election from one constituency, to deposit in the Government account an appropriate amount of money for holding the bye-election

47 RESTORING THE CYCLE OF 14 BIENNIAL RETIREMENT IN THE RAJYA SABHA/LEGISLATIVE COUNCILS Under constitutional provisions, one-third of the members of the Rajya Sabha are to retire every two years. In some States, the biennial election schedule got disturbed as the Legislative Assembly was not in existence at the relevant time. Consequently, the biennial retirement schedule also got disturbed. The ECI s proposal is for amending the law so as to ensure the retirement of one-third of the members in the Rajya Sabha and the State Legislative Councils after every two years. There was a petition in the Patna High Court in 2013 on this issue. The High Court, in its order, observed that the Government and the ECI may sort out the matter for a solution. QUALIFYING DATE FOR 15 ENROLMENT complete 18 years of age on 1 January of the year are eligible for enrolment in the electoral roll of that year. A person who turns 18 on 2 January has to wait till the next year for enrolment. requirement of completing 18 years on 1 January may be amended and a person be made eligible for enrolment the day he turns 18 years old. that the legal opinion is that Article 326 of the Constitution envisages the qualifying date to be fixed by the Legislature and hence there has to be a qualifying date that may even be more than one, but not the entire year. instead of having just one qualifying date of 1 January, there may be four qualifying dates (1 January, 1 April, 1 July and 1 October) and the ECI may decide the date to be chosen as the qualifying date for the revision of the rolls. This will enable the ECI to so choose the qualifying date that in an election year, the qualifying date can be as close to the election as possible so that the maximum number of new electors can be enrolled. 40

48 USE OF COMMON 16 ELECTORAL ROLLS The elections of local bodies are conducted by the State Election Commissions of the respective States. For preparing the electoral rolls for these elections, there is no uniform law or procedure. Some States adopt the rolls prepared by the ECI while a few States prepare the rolls separately. The local laws of the States should be amended to provide that the electoral rolls prepared by the ECI will be used for the elections of local bodies, with necessary modifications and re-arrangement. This will simplify the process of the preparation of the rolls and help to avoid unnecessary expenditure. BAN ON TRANSFER OF 17 ELECTION OFFICERS ON THE EVE OF ELECTION In the case of General Elections, there should be a ban against transferring any election-related officer without the concurrence of the ECI for a period of six months prior to the expiry of the term of the House. EXPENDITURE CEILING FOR 18ELECTION FROM GRADUATES AND TEACHERS CONSTITUENCIES The expenditure ceiling for candidates applies only for the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. applicable in the case of the Legislative Council elections from Graduates and Teachers constituencies (at half the amount of the Assembly Constituency ceiling). The candidate should also be required to submit the account of election expenses. THE MAKING OF A 19 FALSE DECLARATION IN CONNECTION WITH ELECTIONS TO BE AN OFFENCE There should be provision for penal action against those making a false declaration in connection with the election. There is a provision in the R.P. Act, 1950, (Section-31), providing for punishment with imprisonment up to one year for making a false declaration in connection with preparation/revision of electoral rolls. There is no such provision in R.P. Act, 1951, in relation to the conduct of elections. The proposal is to provide for a similar punishment for false declarations in connection with the conduct of elections also. 41

49 THE SAME NUMBER OF 20PROPOSERS FOR ALL CANDIDATES recognised parties need only one proposer while the other candidates require 10 proposers. The ECI suggested that in order to remove confusion, the number of proposers may be made uniform with 10 proposers for all candidates. THE FACILITY OF 21 ENROLMENT IN THE ELECTORAL ROLL TO THE HUSBAND OF A SERVICE VOTER Under the existing law [Sub- Sections {3} and {4} of Section 20 of the R.P. Act, 1950], a person having his service qualification (member of Armed Forces, Paramilitary Forces, or Armed Police Force of a State who is serving outside that State and a person employed under the Government of India in a post outside India) have been given the facility of registration in the electoral roll of their native place. Under Sub-Section (6) of Section 20, the wife of a declared office holder or service voter who is ordinarily residing with such a person also has the facility of enrolment in the native place. However, if the declared office holder/service voter is a female, the husband of such a person does not have the facility of enrolment in the native place even if he is ordinarily residing with the office holder/ service voter. The ECI has suggested that the husband of a declared office holder and the husband of a service voter should also be extended the facility of enrolment in the native place if he is ordinarily residing with such office holder/service voter, by suitably amending Sub-Section(6) of Section 20 of the R.P. Act, THE POWER TO 22REQUISITION PREMISES FOR ELECTION PURPOSES Section 160 of the R.P. Act, 1951, provides for the requisitioning of 42

50 premises for setting up a polling station or for storage of ballot boxes. In the conduct of elections, the services of the Central Police Force are used. For accommodation of such a Police Force, premises are required to be requisitioned, usually for a short period. The Allahabad High Court in an order dated held that Section 160 does not empower requisitioning of premises for accommodating the Police Force. The ECI has proposed that Section 160 of the R.P. Act, 1951, may be amended so as to provide for the requisitioning of premises for any election-related purposes instead of restricting it to only for the purpose of polling stations and the storage of ballot boxes. RULE-MAKING AUTHORITY 23TO BE VESTED IN THE ELECTION COMMISSION the R.P. Act, 1950, and the R.P. Act, 1951, should be conferred on the ECI instead of on the Central Government, who should, however, be consulted by the ECI while framing any rule. AMENDMENT TO SECTION 159(1) OF 24 THE R.P. ACT, 1951 was amended to provide that, in addition to local authorities, all Public Sector Undertakings of the Central Government and State Governments, all statutory and non-statutory bodies aided by the Government, and all universities established or incorporated by or under a Central, Provincial of State Act, should make their staff available for election duties when so requested by the Chief Electoral Officer. of staff for election duties, the ECI has suggested that the District Election Officer may also be empowered to requisition the staff of the authorities mentioned above. 43

51 PROPOSAL FOR 25AMENDMENT OF SUB- SECTION(1) OF SECTION 77 OF THE R.P. ACT, 1951 Section 77(1) of the R.P. Act, 1951, provides for exemption from election expenditure the amount incurred in connection with the travel expenses of a specified number of leaders of political parties. Explanation 1(a) read with Explanation 2 under section 77(1) of the R.P. Act, 1951, provides that at an election, the travel expenses for a maximum of 40 leaders in the case of a recognised party and 20 leaders for an unrecognised party, for their journey for propagating the programme of the party shall not be deemed to be expenditure in connection with the election of a candidate of that party. A large number of leaders, particularly those belonging to the major political parties, undertake visits to the constituency as part of campaigning during the election period. A large number of leaders converging in a small constituency on behalf of a candidate can seriously disturb the level playing field vis-à-vis candidates of parties who do not have the resources for organising visits of a large number of leaders. The ECI has recommended that the provisions of Section 77(1) of the R.P. Act, 1951, may be amended so as to make them applicable only in the case of General Elections to the Lok Sabha or a State Legislative Assembly, or the number of leaders for this purpose may be limited to about two leaders for a bye-election. PROVIDING THE OPEN 26 BALLOT SYSTEM IN CASE OF THE ELECTION TO FILL A SEAT/ SEATS IN THE STATE LEGISLATIVE COUNCILS BY THE MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY BY AMENDING THE R.P. ACT, 1951 The members of the Council of States are elected by the elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of the States and UTs. In the case of Legislative Councils of States where such a Council exists, one-third of the members of the Legislative Council are elected by the members of the Legislative Assembly of the State concerned. Voting procedure by the members of the Legislative Assembly in respect of these two upper Houses is similar, except for the system of voting by open ballot in the case of election to the Council of States. The ECI has recommended that the open ballot system may also be made applicable in the election to fill a seat/ seats in the State Legislative Councils by Members of the Legislative Assembly, by appropriately amending Section 59 of the R.P. Act,

52 1. Totaliser for counting of votes Elections to the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies are conducted using EVMs. The rules regarding counting of votes in EVMs provide for counting polling-station-wise. The ECI has proposed amendment of the Rules to provide for the use of the totaliser for counting of votes at EVM elections. Using the totaliser, it would be possible to take out the results of votes polled in a group of 14 EVMs together as against the present practice of counting votes pollingstation-wise. In such a system of counting, the trend of voting in individual polling station areas would not be known. This will prevent intimidation and post-election victimisation of electors. 2. Amendment of Form-24 A (Format for submitting the Report of Contributions received by political parties) The ECI has suggested amendments in Form-24 in order to make the disclosure of contributions more exhaustive. One of the features is that the parties should be made to declare the total contributions received through donations less than `20,000 (under the existing law, they need to submit account of donations only in excess of this amount). 3. Amendment regarding R.E. Rules, The R.E. Rules, 1960, inter alia, provides for Form 18 and Form 19 for claim for inclusion of name in the electoral roll for a Graduates and Teachers constituency respectively. The ECI has recently decided to prepare electoral rolls of Graduates and Teachers constituencies of State Legislative Councils as Photo Electoral Roll (PER) and also have a linkage of registration in the Council rolls with registration in Assembly Constituency rolls. For this purpose, some additional fields will be required in the electoral database. To capture the additional information, modifications in Form 18 and Form 19 are required to be made by the Central Government. 4. Affidavit to be filed by the candidates with their nomination paper The ECI had convened a meeting with all recognised National and State political parties and one of the issues raised by the political parties was that there should not be any column for indicating current market value of immovable properties as required in the affidavits as per Form 26. The ECI has recommended that the Approximate current market value as required to be mentioned should be substituted by the words Prevailing circle rate to minimise arbitrary valuation or misrepresentation without compromising on the requirements of the disclosure. 45

53 IMPORTANT JUDGEMENTS AND EMPOWERMENT EXTENDED TO THE ECI POLITICAL PARTIES REQUIRED TO SUBMIT TO THE ECI THE ACCOUNT OF THEIR ELECTION EXPENSES JUDGMENT OF THE SUPREME COURT IN THE PETITION OF COMMON CAUSE Political parties incur expenditure on various accounts in connection with electioneering. While there is a ceiling for the election expenses of individual candidates, there is no such limit up to which a political party can spend in connection with the election. There is no legal provision either that mandates the political parties to submit any account of their election expenses. This matter came to be considered by the Supreme Court in a writ petition filed by Common Cause, a registered society raising the issue of financial matters of political parties, lack of transparency in such matters and non-filing of income-tax returns by political parties. In its judgment of 4 April 1996, the Supreme Court held that if there is an expenditure incurred by anyone for the election prospects of a candidate, such expense shall be presumed to have the approval of the 46

54 candidate. If the candidate claims that such expense or any part of the expense is not authorised by him/her, the burden lies on the candidate to disown such expenses. The Supreme Court also held that the ECI has the power under Article 324 of the Constitution to require the political parties to submit the details of expenditure incurred by them in connection with the election of their candidates. In pursuance of this judgment, the ECI issued directions that all recognised National and State political parties shall submit the account of their election expenses at all General Elections to the Lok Sabha and Legislative Assemblies. The account of expenses is to be submitted within 90 days of the completion of the election in the case of Lok Sabha Elections and within 75 days, in the case of an Assembly election. THE MODEL CODE OF CONDUCT TO COME INTO EFFECT FROM THE DATE OF ANNOUNCEMENT OF ELECTION JUDGMENT OF THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA IN HARBANS SINGH JALAL VS. UNION OF INDIA & OTHERS The Model Code of Conduct for political parties and candidates is enforced during the election period. Since the Model Code is a set of behavioural guidelines essentially evolved with the consensus of political parties, there is no legal provision regarding the Model Code. While the ECI has been of the consistent view that the Model Code of Conduct is to be followed from the date the ECI announces the schedule of the election, there has been no settled legal position on this point. In 1997, during the time of the General Election to the Punjab Legislative Assembly, this issue was raised before the High Court of Punjab and Haryana in a writ petition filed by an individual, Mr Harbans Singh Jalal, who contended that the Model Code of Conduct should be enforced only from the date on which the election is formally notified and not from the date of announcement of the election schedule by the ECI, which precedes the notification of elections. The High Court, in its judgment dismissing the petition, held that the ECI is entitled to take necessary steps for the conduct of a free and fair election, even anterior to the date of the issuance of notification of election by the Governor, and from the date of announcement of the election by the ECI. While doing so, the Model Code of Conduct adopted to be followed by all political parties can be directed by the ECI to be followed from the 47

55 date of announcement of the election schedule by it. The judgment of the High Court was challenged in the Supreme Court. As the Special Leave Petition (SLP) was pending before the Supreme Court, the issue was settled when the Union of India decided to withdraw the SLP. THE ELECTION COMMISSION IS EMPOWERED TO LOOK INTO THE CORRECTNESS OF ACCOUNT OF ELECTION EXPENSES FILED BY CANDIDATES JUDGMENT OF SUPREME COURT IN L.R. SHIVARAMAGOWDE VS. P.M. CHANDRASHEKAR Under the R.P. Act, 1951, every candidate at an election is required to maintain a separate and correct account of the expenditure incurred or authorised by the candidate or his/ her election agent in connection with his/her election. After the election, an account of the election expenses is to be submitted before the DEO within 30 days. There is a provision in the Act, which provides that failure to lodge the account of election expenses within the time and in the manner required under the Act can result in the disqualification of the candidate. The Supreme Court, in its judgment in the above-mentioned matter, held that the ECI can go into the correctness of the account of election expenses filed by the candidate and disqualify a candidate under Section 10A of the R.P. Act, 1951, in case the account is found to be incorrect or untrue. This is the first time this particular provision in the law was held by the Court to mean that the ECI can not only see whether the account of election expenses has been filed within the prescribed time but it can also look into the question of whether the account filed by the candidate is a correct account of the election expenses. In a subsequent case of Ashok Chavan vs. Election Commission & Others also, the Supreme Court upheld the jurisdiction of the ECI to enquire into the correctness of the account of election expenses of candidates. CANDIDATES REQUIRED TO FILE AN AFFIDAVIT DECLARING THEIR BACKGROUND AT THE TIME OF FILING NOMINATION JUDGMENT OF THE SUPREME COURT IN UNION OF INDIA VS. ASSOCIATION FOR DEMOCRATIC REFORMS AND OTHERS AND IN PUCL VS. UNION OF INDIA & OTHERS. The Supreme Court, by its judgments of 2 May 2002 and 13 March 2003, held that the ECI has the power to 48

56 direct every candidate at the elections to the Houses of the Parliament and State Legislatures to file a statement in the form of an affidavit, giving details regarding their criminal antecedents, if any, assets and liabilities and educational qualifications, for the electors to get information about the candidates so as to enable them to make an informed choice of their representatives. Pursuant to the above judgments, the ECI issued directions prescribing a format of an affidavit to be filed and the manner in which the affidavits are to be disseminated. At present, copies of the affidavits are being displayed in several public places in the constituency and they are also uploaded on the website of the ECI and the CEOs. The ECI has also recently provided the option for e-filing of the affidavits. In another judgment of 2013 in the matter of affidavits of candidates, the Supreme Court held that the candidates should fill up all the columns in the affidavit without leaving any of them blank. The ECI has followed up the decision of the Supreme Court with instructions to the ROs that if any column is left blank in the affidavit, the RO shall issue a notice to the candidate concerned and if he/she still fails to submit a complete affidavit, the nomination of the candidate would be liable to be rejected. THE POWER OF THE COMMISSION TO TRANSFER OFFICERS CONNECTED WITH ELECTIONS, WHO HAVE COMPLETED A SPECIFIC PERIOD OF POSTING IN ONE PLACE ORDER DATED OF THE ALLAHABAD HIGH COURT IN CIVIL WRIT PETITION NO OF 2002 (LALJI SHUKLA & ANOTHER VS. ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA & OTHERS). As a part of the several measures the Commission takes in preparation for free and fair elections, there is a policy of transfer of officers, including Police 49

57 Officers who are connected with the conduct of elections in one way or the other and who have completed a specific period of stay (which is presently three years) in one place. At the time of the General Election to the Legislative Assembly of Uttar Pradesh in 2002, the Commission ordered the transfer of officers connected with elections, who were posted in one place for more than four years. The transfer of Police Officers was challenged by some of the officers before the Allahabad High Court. Dismissing the petition, the High Court held that the order of the Commission was valid and that the Election Commission is a specialized body which is politically neutral and has experience in conducting elections and ordinarily it is for the Commission to decide what would be conducive for a fair election. THE COMMISSION S POWER TO ORDER TRANSFER OF OFFICERS DURING ELECTIONS NUTAN THAKUR VS. ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA (MISC. BENCH NO OF 2014) JUDGMENT DATED The ECI had directed the transfer of certain officers belonging to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), the Indian Police Service (IPS) and the Provincial Civil Services etc., after notification of the 2014 Lok Sabha Election. Challenging the authority of the ECI in transferring the aforesaid officers, the petitioner filed a writ petition before the Hon ble High Court of Allahabad. The contention of the petitioner was that the transfer order issued by the ECI was contrary to the procedure prescribed in the IAS (Cadre) Rule, 1954, and IPS (Cadre) Rules, The Hon ble High Court observed that the said Rules do not operate in any area or field or activity connected with elections. The Cadre Rules cannot be said to be law relating to or in connection with the elections and held that the words control, superintendence and discipline occurring in Section 13-CC of R.P. Act, 1950, and Section 28A of the R.P.Act, 1951, embrace the power, authority and 44 50

58 jurisdiction of the ECI to require transfer of the officers employed in connection with conduct of elections. ECI VS. STATE OF KARANATKA & ORS. (W.P. NOS OF 2013, OF 2013 & OF 2013) ORDER DATED During the Karnataka Assembly election, the ECI had directed the State Goernment to transfer some Deputy Commissioners of Karnataka. Some of the officers approached the Hon ble Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), contending that their transfer was in violation of the tenure condition under the All India Administrative Service (Cadre) Rules, 2006, and the notification dated of the Government of India notifying a minimum tenure of two years for Deputy Commissioners in Karanataka. The Hon ble CAT stayed the transfer order of the Deputy Commissioners. Thereupon, the ECI challenged the aforesaid decision of the Hon ble CAT, before the High Court of Karantaka. The High Court, while setting aside the aforesaid order of the CAT, observed that tenure rules under the All India Services Act do not deal with conduct of elections and they only regulate the service conditions of the persons appointed to All India Services and prescribes the procedure for transfer before completion of the minimum tenure. This does not apply to their service during elections. The Court also held that during elections, the ECI has ample power under Article 324 to direct transfer of officials and it has no obligation to give reasons why the earlier incumbents are not required or why it has opted for specific officers in their place. SITTING MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT AND STATE LEGISLATURES WHO ATTRACT DISQUALIFICATION PROVISIONS ON ACCOUNT OF CONVICTION FOR OFFENCES TO LOSE THEIR MEMBERSHIP JUDGMENT OF SUPREME COURT IN LILY THOMAS CASE The ECI has been recommending amendment of the law to prevent criminalisation of politics. The ECI s proposal was that there should be provision to disqualify a person who is facing trial in cases where charges have been framed by the Court for serious offences. Sub-section(4) of Section 8 provided protection against the immediate disqualification of a sitting member on conviction. This protection was challenged in the petition of Lily Thomas. The Supreme Court in its 45 51

59 judgment dated held sub-section(4) to be ultra vires the Constitution. Consequently, if a sitting member is convicted after the date of judgment and the conviction attracts disqualification under sub-section (1), (2) or (3), his seat will become vacant forthwith. As a follow-up, the ECI has written to Chief Secretaries to put in place a system to ensure prompt reporting of cases of conviction of sitting members attracting disqualification (letter dated ). Such cases are to be reported to the Speaker/Chairman of the House and to the ECI. NONE OF THE ABOVE (NOTA) PROVISION ON THE EVM/BALLOT PAPER JUDGMENT OF THE SUPREME COURT IN THE PETITION FILED BY PEOPLE S UNION FOR CIVIL LIBERTIES (PUCL). In 2001, the ECI sent a proposal to the Government to amend the law so as to provide for a neutral vote provision for the electors who may not find any of the candidates on the panel worthy of their votes. In 2004, the PUCL filed a petition (WP No. 161/2004) challenging the vires of Rules 41(2) and 49-O and seeking a direction to provide the necessary provision in the ballot papers and EVMs for the protection of the right not to vote for any candidate, and to do it in secrecy. The Supreme Court, in its judgment dated , held that the ECI may provide for the NOTA option on EVMs and ballot papers so that the electors who come to the polling station and decide not to vote for any candidate in the fray are able to exercise the right in secrecy. The court (referring to the ECI s proposal made to the Government) observed that the ECI was also in favour of such a provision. There was also a direction to the Government of India to provide the necessary help for the implementation of the Court s direction. In pursuance of the judgment, the ECI issued directions that after the particulars pertaining to the last candidate on the ballot paper, there shall be a panel for NOTA by pressing the button against which an elector who does not want to vote for any candidate can exercise that option in secrecy. JURISDICTION OF COURTS EXCLUDED FOR ENTERTAINING PETITIONS CHALLENGING ELECTORAL MATTERS DURING THE PERIOD OF THE ELECTIONS In N.P. Ponnuswami vs. Returning Officer (AIR 1952 SC 64), the Supreme Court held that Article 52

60 329(b) of the Constitution excludes the jurisdiction of courts to interfere in electoral matters until the process is completed. The Supreme Court held that the electoral process, once started, cannot be interfered with at any intermediary stage by the courts. Elections can be challenged only by means of election petitions after the completion of elections. The court also held that the word election in Article 329(b) connotes the entire process of election, commencing with the issue of notification calling the election and culminating in the declaration of the results of the election. THE ELECTION COMMISSION S PLENARY POWERS UNDER ARTICLE 324(1) OF THE CONSTITUTION In Mohinder Singh Gill vs. the Chief Election Commissioner & Others (AIR 1978 SC 851), the Supreme Court held that once the notification calling the election is issued, the entire electoral process is under the charge of the ECI. Where the law and the rules do not provide for the mechanism of dealing with an extraordinary situation, the hands of the ECI are not tied and the ECI is competent to exercise its power and see that the election process is completed. Article 324(1) empowers the ECI to cope with situations that may not be provided for in the enacted laws and rules. In the same judgement, the Supreme Court also held that Article 329(b) is a blanket ban on litigative challenges to electoral steps taken by the ECI to complete an election. THE CONSTITUTIONAL VALIDITY OF THE SYMBOLS ORDER UPHELD BY THE SUPREME COURT In Kanhaiya Lal Omar vs. R.K. Trivedi & Others (AIR 1986 SC 111), the Supreme Court upheld the constitutional validity of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, The Supreme Court held that the ECI s power to issue the Symbols Order flows from Article 324 of the Constitution, which empowers the ECI to issue all directions necessary for the purpose of conducting free and fair elections. 53

61 THE MODEL CODE OF CONDUCT The Model Code of Conduct is a set of guidelines for political parties, especially the ruling party and candidates, in the elections. It is a detailed compendium of how the elections should proceed, and how political parties and candidates should conduct themselves. Its aim is to make sure that the elections are free, fair and peaceful, and that a level playing field is ensured for political parties and candidates. Model Code of Conduct THE (MCC) is a self-regulatory code that is enforced by the ECI on the announcement of elections, and its main objective is to provide for a level playing field among the political parties and the contestants in the election. The very essence of the MCC is the swiftness with which violations of the MCC are taken note of and remedial action initiated. The MCC is self-regulative from the point of view of its genesis. The MCC, to an extent, is unique to the Indian elections because it has been adopted and has evolved with the consensus of the political parties in India over a period of about four decades. The MCC began as a set of Do s and Don ts for the political parties and candidates during the 1960 General Elections to the Kerala Legislative Assembly, and it was drafted at the initiative of the State administration in consultation with the political parties. Subsequently, in 1962, before the Third Lok Sabha Election, the ECI came into the picture and circulated the Code among all recognised political parties in existence at that time and also among to the State Governments, with an advisory to the State Governments to discuss the Code with the political parties in the States and urge them to give their consent to the same. The State Governments reported subsequently that the political parties had accepted and followed the Code in the Third General Election to the Lok Sabha. Thereafter, the Code in different forms was followed in many of the States in subsequent elections. Then, 54

62 at the time of the General Elections to some State Assemblies in 1974, the ECI circulated the Code of Conduct to the political parties in those States. The ECI also suggested constituting committees at the District level, headed by the District Collector and comprising representatives of political parties as members, for considering cases of violation of the Code and ensuring compliance with it by all parties and candidates. In 1979, the ECI, in consultation with the political parties, further amplified the Code, adding a new section placing restrictions on the party in power so as to prevent cases of abuse of position of power to get undue advantage over other parties and candidates. Finally, the Code in its present form was again consolidated and re-issued by the ECI in From the Tenth Lok Sabha General Election (1991) onwards, the ECI has been taking proactive measures to ensure strict compliance with the MCC in both letter and spirit. Significantly, the Model Code of Conduct, by its very nomenclature, is a regulatory code. It does not have any legal status, but the observation of the provisions of the Code and their implementation in the last few decades establishes that the lack of legal stamp does not, in any way affect the working or the credibility of the Code. On the other hand, the manner in which the odd violation has been or is handled with the speed and urgency that an election situation demands has stood the test of time and has come to stay as an established and accepted way of enforcing the Code. Even though the Model Code of Conduct does not have legal status, it is true that there are several provisions in the Code that also have a corresponding echo in the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in the form of electoral offences as well as provisions in the Representation of the People Act in the form of corrupt practices. There are also provisions in the Code related to processions and meetings during election times, which are also covered under Section 144 of Cr.PC (the Code of Criminal Procedure). There are also certain other provisions in the Code, which get covered under various provisions of existing laws. However, additionally, the Code as it is implemented at the time of elections, is more or less in the nature of the rules of the game where the ECI looks on itself as an umpire. The purity and the quality of the elections are enhanced by the manner in which a Code of this nature works. Further, the ambit in which it gets implemented would not be possible 55

63 unless it was through the active support of political parties and other stakeholders in the elections. It is with their support that the ECI has been able to enforce and execute the MCC in the way it has been done till now. Some of the other provisions in the Code are in the nature of prohibition on the Government of the day, and are there to ensure that the ruling party and its candidates do not get an unfair advantage during the elections by the fact that they are in power or in Government. These aspects and situations are not covered under any law or statute at present and that fact makes these provisions a very important aspect of the MCC, particularly from the perception point of view that there is a level playing field among the various stakeholders in the election arena. The Model Code of Conduct comes into force immediately after the announcement of elections by the ECI. It remains in force till the completion of the elections, that is, the declaration of results. The announcement of elections by the ECI is ordinarily not to be made more than three weeks prior to the formal notification of the elections.the ECI ensures the observance of the Model Code of Conduct by the political party/ parties in power, including ruling parties at the Centre and in the States and contesting candidates, in the discharge of its Constitutional duties of conducting free, fair and peaceful elections to the Parliament and the State Legislatures under Article 324 of the Constitution of India. It is also ensured that official machinery for electoral purposes is not misused. Further, it is made certain that electoral offences, malpractices and corrupt practices such as impersonation, bribing and inducement of voters, and threatening and intimidation of the voters are prevented by all means. In case of a violation, appropriate measures are taken. The MCC lays down various provisions to guide the conduct of the political parties and candidates. The salient features of the MCC set down guidelines on how political parties, contesting candidates and party/parties in power should conduct themselves during the process of the elections, i.e., on their general conduct during electioneering, holding meetings and processions, poll-day activities and the functioning of the party in power, among other provisions. For instance, provisions under the General Conduct category include that no party or candidate 56

64 shall indulge in any activity which may aggravate existing differences or create mutual hatred or cause tension between different castes and communities, religious or linguistic; criticism of other political parties, when made, shall be confined to their policies and programme, past record and work; there shall be no appeal to caste or communal feelings; all parties and candidates shall scrupulously avoid all activities that are corrupt practices and offences under the election law, such as bribing of voters, intimidation of voters, impersonation of voters, canvassing within 100 metres of polling stations, holding public meetings during the period of 48 hours ending with the hour fixed for the close of the poll, and the transport and conveyance of voters to and from polling station; no political party or candidate shall permit its or his/her followers to make use of any individual s land, building, compound wall, and so on, without his/her permission, for erecting flag-staffs, suspending banners, pasting notices, writing slogans, and so on. Besides such provisions under various categories, the MCC lays down guidelines for the behaviour of the supporters of political parties and candidates, processions, the treatment of posters, the holding of meetings, the taking out of processions, cooperation with officers on poll day, the behaviour at the polling booth, the behaviour of Observers and guidelines for the party in power. Many instances of violation of the MCC by political parties and contesting candidates were reported during the General Elections and the State Assembly Elections held in However, no rampant violation of the MCC was reported. It is noteworthy that all the complaints of the violation of the MCC (not covered by law and hence not registered) received have been disposed of at the office of the ECI and no case is pending in this category. Regarding the violation of the MCC by political parties and contesting candidates (cases that are covered under the law, and registered), these are to be disposed of by virtue of the due legal process involved. 57

65 DESTINATION POLLING STATION April 7 was the landmark day when the elections for the 16th Lok Sabha began. An estimated 834,082,814 (just over 834 million) people were eligible to vote in the world s biggest democratic exercise. The election took place on 10 poll days, and over a period of five weeks. Voting started in the hills and valleys of the North East before moving into central upland areas and then shifting west and south. sheer scale of the electoral THE exercise for the 16th Lok Sabha elections was unprecedented. The number of people eligible to vote was around 120 million more than in the 2009 elections. The country had gone to polls with Photo Electoral Rolls (PERs) for the first time in In that year the State of Assam, Jammu and Kashmir and Nagaland did not have Photo Electoral Rolls, and Elector Photo Identity Cards (EPICs) were not distributed to electors in Assam and Nagaland. By March 2014, all States and UTs had PERs. Photographs of per cent electors were already printed in the electoral rolls and per cent electors had been given EPICs. In 10 poll days, the world s most populous electorate went to approximately 927,553 polling booths to cast their votes. As many as 11 million personnel, including members of the Central Armed Police Forces, were deployed to help with the elections, out of which 5.5 million civilians were to help in managing the voting process. Some of the medium-sized States held polls in all constituencies on the same day, but in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal, voting was spread over five or more days. Jammu and Kashmir, with six constituencies in total, took five separate days, to allow the security forces to focus on one constituency at a time. The exercise was vast after all, the ECI had made arrangements to ensure that no voter should have to travel more than 2 km to a polling station, nor should any one station serve more than 1,500 voters. 58

66 THE SCHEDULE This is how it went in the States and Union territories going to polls: APRIL 7 (Six constituencies) Assam, Tripura APRIL 9 (Six constituencies) Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland APRIL 10 (91 constituencies) Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Lakshadweep, Delhi APRIL 11 (One constituency) Mizoram APRIL 12 (Seven constituencies) Assam, Sikkim, Tripura, Goa APRIL 17 (121 constituencies) Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal APRIL 24 (117 constituencies) Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Puducherry APRIL 30 (89 constituencies) Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu MAY 7 (64 constituencies) Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal MAY 12 (41 constituencies) Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal 59

67 MODEL POLLING BOOTHS According to the ECI s instructions, polling stations had to be set up in buildings worthy of use, with proper windows, ventilation and space. They were to be on the ground floor, have a separate entrance and exit for voters as far as possible, and be equipped with a standard voting compartment. The ECI identified a list of Basic Minimum Facilities (BMF) which every polling station was to provide. These were: Provision for ramp for differently abled voters Provision for drinking water Adequate furniture Proper lighting A help desk Proper signage Toilet Besides the provision of the Basic Minimum Facilities at all the polling stations, in a bid to attract voters to the polling booths, a few model polling stations were set up in the country for the first time. In Puducherry, there was a mobile model polling station! Some model polling stations were set up to offer a welcoming atmosphere to the voters. Some had spruced-up infrastructure, including freshly painted interiors and exteriors, along with a prominently displayed board conveying the name of the location, the polling station, the Assembly Constituency, the election district, the ECI symbol, the national emblem, and the State or Union Territories symbol as well as first-aid medical facilities. The facility of battery-powered rickshaws or e-rickshaws was also available at some polling stations along with a poster saying May I help you? to carry voters (mainly senior citizens and differently abled people) from the entry gate right to the polling booth. 60

68 These decked-up polling stations were attractive venues, especially in places where the voters had to wait in a queue, in densely populated regions. There was signage put up directing voters to their polling locations. During queue management, priority was given to patients, pregnant women, old people and differently abled persons for voting. The aim was to boost voter turnout and also offer the voters a pleasant and friendly experience. Newspapers and other media reported that the Basic Minimum Facilities and other arrangements drew appreciation from the voters. The None Of The Above (NOTA) option was exercised for the first time in a Lok Sabha Election in 2014, in which voters could opt not to vote for any candidate contesting for a particular seat without their right to maintaining secrecy about their decision being violated. The design of the None Of The Above (NOTA) option was in a rectangular shape with rounded corners and a black background where NOTA was written in capital letters in English. Consequent to the Supreme Court ruling allowing voters to exercise the NOTA option, the ECI provided a button for the NOTA option below the name of the last candidate on the EVM panel of contesting candidates. The ECI had already clarified that the candidate securing the highest number of votes would be declared elected even if the number of electors going for the NOTA option surpassed the votes polled by the electoral contestants. India is the twelfth country in the world to adopt the NOTA option in elections. 61

69 LIONHEART VOTER Mahant Bharatdas Darshandas, belonging to Banej village deep in the Gir forest in Junagadh, Gujarat, was once again a privileged voter. Mr Darshandas, who is 59 years old, is a temple priest and the sole resident of Banej Tirthdham, a pilgrimage spot inside the Gir Forest National Park and looks after a Shiva temple there. Banej falls under the Una Assembly segment of the Junagadh Parliamentary Constituency. What brought him into the headlines is the fact that the ECI set up a polling booth solely for him, right next to the temple in a government department building (the only other construction there, besides the temple). If the booth had not been set up, Mr Darshandas would have had to travel 20 km to cast his vote. Mr Darshandas has lived there for the past 35 years and is not intimidated by the lions that roam the Gir Forest National Park. He has been casting his vote for the past elections, including the 2004 and 2009 Parliamentary elections and the 2007 and 2012 State elections. Each time, two policemen and four or five election officials facilitate this. Darshandas remains one of India s most prized voters, proving that if you cannot reach a polling station easily, the polling station will come to you. This time, too, the ECI ensured that Darshandas was helped in every way to cast his precious single vote. Polling officials travelled carrying the polling material, accompanied by forest guards to protect them from wild animals. The ECI made persistent efforts to reach every voter, clearly indicating to each individual that their vote was important and essential for both the election process and for the country. 62

70 A TRUE BELIEVER The polls in Himachal Pradesh brought to the forefront a certain gentleman with a unique achievement to his credit. The 2014 Lok Sabha elections provided another opportunity for one of independent India s first voters, 97-year-old Shyam Saran Negi of Kalpa village in Kinnaur District, a retired school teacher, to exercise his franchise. He had voted in the first poll held in independent India. Though the first General Elections to the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies were held in February in 1952, in Kinnaur Assembly constituency it was held much earlier on 23 October 1951, because it was anticipated that there would be heavy snowfall during peak winter in Kinnaur. Mr Negi was a bachelor then and has cast his vote in all the Lok Sabha Elections since then. Mr Negi reached the polling booth early in the morning accompanied by his wife Hira Mani, who is 92 years old. The Chief Electoral Officer of the State had recently appointed him as the brand ambassador for the poll campaign in the region. Mr Negi s name and face had become well-known since Google created a video of him for their #PledgeToVote campaign. Mr Negi s name was registered in polling booth no. 50 and, coincidentally, the booth was set up in the school from where he had retired after serving for 23 years. The Kinnaur Deputy Commissioner welcomed Mr Negi at the polling station and honoured him with a cap and a scarf. Mr Negi was the first person to cast his vote there, followed by his wife. India s oldest known voter, Shyam Saran Negi of Himachal Pradesh, spoke about the pride and exhilaration he feels each time he votes, as if every time is the first time he is voting. 63

71 THE POWER OF THREE Seradanand is polling station no. 126 in 1- Bharatpur-Sonhat AC, in the Korea district of Chhattisgarh. It tells the story of the small details a polling station with only three voters. Seradanand had been created as a separate PS in 2008, just before the Assembly elections of 2008, on account of the large distance (17 km) that had to be covered by the voters of Seradanand. Being in a remote forest area, it has been categorized as a hypersensitive polling booth. The village has only one household, with Devraj and his son. Both have been issued their EPICs. Both of them cast their votes in the Assembly elections held in November Two generations of the family have continued to live here, dependent on their land and minor forest produce, and reluctant to leave the village. Other family members have moved out, and Devraj s wife has passed away. Besides these two residents, Mahipal, an employee of the State Forest Department, is stationed in the village, as a fire-watcher. He is also a registered voter here. DEALING WITH A STRANGE STING OPERATION In behaviour that was symbolic of voters in many different parts of India, the electors and administration of Ameradugu village in Chhattisgarh refused to be kept down by anything; so stung were they by the excitement of the elections. During the elections, the village was attacked by a huge swarm of honeybees. To prevent this from affecting the polling procedures, the administration made a temporary arrangement a few metres away from the designated polling station of Kairwari and sent a medical team for the people. The electors continued voting, resulting in Ameradugu recording a high voter turnout of 86 per cent. And that wasn t all. During polling in Bhilwara and Jhunjhunu, too, in Rajasthan, there was a bee attack. Some poll workers and voters were injured before it was all brought under control. In Arakkonam in Tamil Nadu, too, a group of government officials undergoing training on election procedures was attacked by a swarm of bees. At least a dozen of them had to be taken to the hospital. 64

72 NO MOUNTAIN TOO HIGH The Himalayas, Nature s sentinel to the north of the country, have always posed challenges to everyone. While conquering mountains may be a matter of sport or adventure at other times, during election time it is a matter of duty. One of the many snowbound places in the difficult terrain of the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir is Zanskar a region girdled by lofty peaks and precarious terrain. And, of course, poll officials had to reach here as well. The voters awaited. Preparation starts a few days ahead because who can predict the weather! Poll officials and security personnel trekked to isolated and farflung hamlets to set up polling booths. It wasn t a small clutch that made the climb. Nearly 1,500 security personnel hiked up to Zanskar, around 10,000-11,000 ft above sea level. The air thins out at that height, and it gets difficult to breathe. Altitude sickness may well follow. The Ladakh Parliamentary constituency had four assembly segments Kargil, Zanskar, Leh and Nubra. The polling parties were airlifted to Kargil. There are around 50 polling stations in Zanskar with an electorate of about 11,000, and a team of five or six polling officials man each polling station. The team members carry with them oxygen cylinders, sleeping bags, eatables, torches, as well as the poll material that include the EVMs and the indelible ink. The polling teams and police have to trek for around 35 km to reach some of the polling stations. Not only do the vagaries of the weather pose a challenge in Himachal Pradesh but poll officials have to walk long distances to reach the polling booths. And nearly 74 polling booths have no roads. Polling parties have to walk for 25 km to reach a booth in Shakti, for 59 voters in the Banjar assembly segments in Kullu district. In Lower Dibang Valley district of Arunachal Pradesh, the Hukani polling station had 22 voters. Officials travel 22 km on foot to get there. 65

73 AGAINST ALL ODDS When election time comes round, the ECI and its officials go to amazing lengths to make sure that all citizens in our country can participate. This creates a veritable hurdle race because India is largely rural and decent infrastructure is not available in many of its regions. Nearly 5.5 million poll workers find their way into the polling stations in various towns and cities, villages and hamlets of the country. They are protected by five million police and Central Armed Police Forces personnel as they spread out, determined to reach their designated destinations to facilitate the electoral process and ensure participation. Their routes take them through the snow-capped Himalayan mountains of Ladakh in the north to the tiny Lakshadweep islands in the Arabian Sea to the south. Even in a place where there is a single voter, his or her ballot cannot be ignored. The logistical challenges in delivering polling material and EVMs to polling stations in a country as topographically diverse as India are enormous, requiring planes, boats, trains, helicopters, elephants, camels, mules, and, of course, feet, in order to cross the Himalayas, deserts, mosquito-infested forests inhabited by wild animals, and even confront armed extremists who are always looking for a chance to derail the poll process. In north eastern Arunachal Pradesh, polling officials trekked five hours through a forest carrying a five-plus-kilo polling machine to reach a settlement with just two voters, near the Chinese border. 66

74 HIGH THERE! A desert plateau in Ladakh. Two tents pitched at many thousands of feet above sea level. A surging sandstorm. Protecting the machine (the EVM) was the mission of the Government officers working at a makeshift polling station. This was Indian democracy in action at the polling station at Anlay Phu in Ladakh. What was special was that Anlay Phu is the polling station at the highest altitude in India, situated at over 14,567 ft in the Himalayas. The conditions were very hard and challenging, but the poll officials continued their work. The voters were waiting! Several of the voters were itinerant shepherds who make their living by selling wool. And they had ridden a horse or a mule, or simply walked across the mountain desert. Just getting to Anlay Phu was difficult enough. From Leh the largest Poll workers travel with camel caravans to reach settlements in the deserts of Rajasthan. town in Ladakh it is a bumpy journey by jeep for more than 125 miles to Anlay, the town closest to the polling station. From there, again, it is a three-hour drive on a potholed path across 37 miles of untrodden cold desert. Yet, even here, at 13,000 feet, campaign posters were seen, albeit at the mercy of the strong wind. The polling tents in Anlay Phu, overseen by five officials and two guards, were set up for 85 registered voters 47 women and 38 men who live around the area. Some 60 or 70 more people are said to live close by without basic facilities such as electricity and phone lines. The workers slept in tents at belowfreezing temperatures the night before voting day. In the 2014 Lok Sabha Election, workers set up 531 polling stations for 160,000 voters in Ladakh, whose area roughly equals Ohio in the USA. One station serves just 10 people. Many stations can be accessed only by horse, mule or helicopter. 67

75 CROCODILE CORNER 68 Biswajit Roy, a middle-aged schoolteacher in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands became a man with a Mission Nearly Impossible. It was to cross mangrove swamps populated by deadly and hungry saw-toothed crocodiles and then cross a three-hour expanse of open sea. That s not where it ended. He would then have to trek through a jungle to the isolated village of Hanspuri, so that its voters about 260 of them could participate in the poll process. Mr Roy and his two voting machines got into a canoe to conquer the obstacles set in his way by the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The archipelago, which is more than 1,200 km from the Indian mainland, comprises more than 550 islands, and most of them have very dense forests. One has two choices if one wants to get to Hanspuri. Going across land would would have meant that one has to cut through thick forests where at any time a snake can block one s path, and then one has to hike across mountainous land, all the while hauling the haversack with the polling materials. Mr Roy had chosen the other, saner route; or what seemed so. The dangers were still daunting: crocodiles and the fear of the boat overturning. He, his helpers and a security team climbed into two canoes. Rescue boats were on hand. When they reached the destination after three hours, the final point was still a long way off. They were carrying two EVMs, the second one a back-up in case the first failed, as well as water, food and camping gear. They walked and walked in a single line over narrow and rickety bridges until they finally reached the village Hanspuri. Later, they put up polling booths for the next day s voting process, which would start early morning. By the time polling got over at 6 pm, around 80 per cent of the voters had voted. The poll workers could not return that night because of low tide and had to spend another night in Hanspuri, with the security men guarding the EVMs all night. Business as usual, during election time! In Meghalaya in the North East, election officials had to contend with a herd of wild elephants that blocked the way to two polling stations. Eventually, forest rangers came to their rescue.

76 THE INK OF TRUTH The indelible dot is the mark of the voter s participation in the electoral process in India. And like everything else in our ancient nation, it has its own history. The indelible ink with which the dot is made is popularly known as Voter s Ink. It is used to mark on voter s finger during elections to avoid fraud, multiple voting and other illegal practices. It is not an ordinary ink as, once it is applied on the skin, it remains for a few months. The responsibility of producing the special ink belongs to the Mysore Paints & Varnish Limited (MPVL), a Government of Karnataka undertaking, which supplies this ink to India as well as to several foreign countries. In India this special ink is essential for the government and the ECI to hold and complete the process of the General Elections. The ink is applied on the nail of the index finger of the left hand of the voter. This ink cannot be removed by any chemical, detergents or oil. MPVL specialises in the manufacture and supply of quality indelible ink, in association with the ECI, the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), and the National Research Development Corporation (NRDC). The Mysore-based company is the only authorised supplier of this type of foolproof indelible ink in India, with an exclusive licence granted by the NRDC, New Delhi, since MPVL was set up during 1937 by the late Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar, the then Maharaja of Mysore Province under the name Mysore Lac & Paint Works Ltd. In 1962, the ECI in collaboration with Union Law Ministry, the NPL and the NRDC signed an agreement with the company for supplying indelible ink for the elections. During 1989, it was renamed Mysore Paints & Varnish Limited. This unique ink is much sought after. India has been exporting the ink to 28 countries since 1976, including to Turkey, South Africa, Nigeria, Nepal, Ghana, Papua-New Guinea, Burkina Faso, Canada, Togo, Sierra Leone, Malaysia and Cambodia. 69

77 THE FINAL COUNTDOWN If voting was a complex exercise to be organised across the length and breadth of the country, its culmination in the counting of votes was an equally complex task, and one that had to be completed with precision, accuracy and security. About a million personnel were engaged in the counting exercise and half a million security personnel were there to make sure that it proceeded smoothly. counting of votes made up THEthe grand culmination of the ten-day Lok Sabha Election. The process of counting began on 16 May 2014 across the country. The counting exercise was held at 989 counting centres. Starting early in the morning, the counting revealed the trends by as early as 9 am, and by noon it was clear who would be the major players in the 16th Lok Sabha. The counting was to be completed by 4 pm. Of the counting centres, the maximum number (168) were located in Andhra Pradesh, followed by 98 in West Bengal, 76 in Uttar Pradesh, 64 in Odisha, 51 in Assam and 48 in Maharashtra. There was an air of anticipation and excitement about the results because of the large electoral turnout, which was credited to the quality of electoral rolls prepared by the poll officials all over the country. The 16th General Elections to the Lok Sabha saw the participation of 464 political parties. This comprised six National political parties, 39 State recognised parties and 419 registered unrecognised parties. According to the Press Information Bureau of India (PBI), in the 2009 General Elections, 363 parties had participated, including seven National parties, 34 State recognized parties and 322 registered unrecognised parties. The total number of registered parties was 1,607 before the 2014 General Elections; these were six National parties, 60 State recognised parties and 1,541 registered unrecognized parties. Again, according to the PBI, the total number of registered parties in 2009 was 1,060. The increase in the 70

78 total number of registered parties from 764 in 2004 to 1,646 in 2014 was largely due to the rise in the number of registered unrecognised parties from 702 in 2004 to 1,593 in India s electoral exercise came to an end on counting day, with the ECI set-up at the ready to count the votes sealed in the EVMs, in a short span of about 12 hours. The counting centres for the votes mostly in close proximity to EVM strong rooms were being guarded by the CAPFs, besides the areas around the counting centres being secured by local administration too. The EVMs were kept under tight security to rule out any possibility of tampering with the machines. These centres were turned into veritable fortresses ahead of the counting process. 1,000,000 was the number of counting personnel 550,000 was the number of security personnel 989 counting centres were set up 71

79 GUARDING THE VOTE Police personnel as well as the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) guarded the strong rooms with the EVMs stored in them. The entire premises were surrounded with security. The ECI had formulated detailed instructions on keeping these machines in strong rooms. The strong rooms were under CCTV surveillance and a very strict security cover was provided roundthe-clock by the CAPFs outside the inner ring. After the counting exercise was over, the Control Units and Ballot Units used in the 16th Lok Sabha Election were kept in strong rooms under armed police guard for six months. A decision was to be taken on the EVMs after that period. In the event of any election petition being filed before a court, challenging the declaration of results in a particular constituency, the EVMs used in that constituency and retained, could then easily be brought out to confirm the data stored in them. However, with most winning margins being rather large, the chances of the results being challenged was slight. There were some problems in retrieving the data from EVMs in a few constituencies, but these were rectified as soon as possible. In cases where the snags could not be rectified, the poll authorities looked at the margin, i.e., the difference in votes polled by the winner and the runner-up. If the margin was huge, the votes polled in the particular EVM unit was not taken into account, with the consent of the ECI, as it was unlikely to change the electoral prospects of a candidate in the fray. There could, of course, be no laxity in security on counting day. In order to avoid any untoward 72

80 incident or any untoward cases of violence, police arrangements had been strengthened 24 hours ahead of counting day. Preparations were also made to keep in check any excessive disturbances by revellers belonging to the winning candidate s team. Further, the police, along with the respective District administrations, announced a dry day in their respective jurisdictions. Crowd management at the counting venue is usually the biggest problem for any police unit on counting day, along with the management of the victory processions of winning candidates. To deal with this, patrolling on city streets was stepped up, and check posts and barricades set up at key places in all the various jurisdictions. No effort was spared to ensure that the counting process was secure, accurate and peaceful. THE VOTING MACHINES The EVMs were the new VIPs and there were stringent rules for ensuring their safety. 1. The strong rooms were to have only one door and no other door or opening. In case there were other doors or openings, they were to be bricked up. 2. The strong rooms were to have a double lock system, with one key to be kept with the strong-room in-charge and the other key with an officer above the rank of Assistant District Magistrate. 3. Arrangements had to be made for fire and flood safety. 4. The strong room was to be under 24x7 guard by the Central Armed Police Forces from either the State or the Central pool. 5. The strong room had to be under 24x7 CCTV coverage. 6. One control room adjacent to the strong room had to be operative round-the-clock. 7. A Gazetted Officer along with a police officer was on duty 24x7 to monitor the security arrangements of the strong room. 8. Arrangements had to be perfect, with uninterrupted power supply at the strong room locations during the entire period of the storage of the EVMs. Emergency arrangements for stand-by generators had to be made to ensure this. 73

81 COUNTING TIME Counting of votes needs to be accurate, quick and transparent to maintain the fidelity of the electoral process. So how were votes counted in an EVM? Basically, the Ballot Unit is switched on in the presence of senior poll officials and the counting agents of candidates, and the result command keyed in to get results per machine. Seeking to ensure transparency, the ECI deployed Micro Observers at all counting tables. The ROs were to provide printouts of each counting round and every table, to the counting agents of the candidates. MAY 14 Counting begins... Deployment of security personnel was drawn up Staff from various departments of State Governments across India were deployed for counting duty A central Observer for each counting centre and a Micro- Observer were decided upon Video cameras were installed for ROs Centres were prepared with security and logistical arrangements MAY 15 A 100 m radius around the counting centres was declared out of bounds for public MAY 16 4 am: Personnel reported at counting centres 74

82 5 am 6 am: ROs selected personnel for counting duty through draw of lots; others were kept in reserve Counting personnel and Micro- Observers took position on the table 8 am: Counting began 7 am-8 am: Counting agents of candidates were allowed to enter Postal ballots were checked by ROs and sent to postal ballot tables The counting supervisor showed all counting staff how to press a button on EVMs and find out the votes polled by each candidate 30 minutes later, counting of votes from EVMs started, roundwise. One round meant counting of votes recorded in a set of up to 14 EVMs. Counting in the first round took longer (45 minutes) due to formalities; later rounds took about 15 minutes each Counting staff noted down votes polled by each candidate on a form and forwarded it to the RO s table Once a round was completed, votes polled by each candidate were tabulated; the RO declared the result of that round. The details were handed to candidates and their polling agents The CEO of the State or UT was then informed of the result. Subsequently, his/her office fed it into an ECI server 75

83 THE COUNTDOWN CONTINUES The counting officials carried out the last and very essential task that completed the election process. Specific instructions were issued to the ROs (who were in charge of counting votes and communicating the results) for the smooth and secure, yet transparent, counting of votes. No unauthorised person was allowed within 100 metres of counting centres. Anyone, including candidates, with gun-toting security personnel was not to be allowed inside the counting centres even if they held top positions in the Government. Candidates with security cover were allowed only if they voluntarily left their security personnel behind. The only exceptions to the rule were those persons who were provided with SPG protection. The ECI had advised the candidates not to nominate elected representatives or Government officials as their counting agents, who would be allowed entry at the counting centres an hour before the exercise started. Counting day was a long one for the counting personnel as they reported at work very early in the morning. In a couple of hours, they were allocated counting tables in different halls through a draw of lots. By eight in the morning, the counting started with postal ballots.normally, if there was a delay in announcing the final results, it was only because a candidate sought re-counting and the ROs agreed with it. The majority of counting centres had broadband connectivity for a seamless outflow of trends after each round of counting, to the ECI control room at Nirvachan Sadan in New Delhi. In order to 76

84 ensure that trends and results from counting centres were available on the ECI website on a real-time basis, the National Informatics Centre the government s information technology arm had provided additional servers to the poll panel. Some of the features of the counting exercise were as follows: Each Parliamentary Constituency had one counting centre. Counting centres had separate counting halls for each of the 10 Assembly areas within a Parliamentary Constituency. Three-tier security cordons safeguarded counting centres. Security deployment began at a periphery of 100 metres from the counting centre. There was a middle cordon at the gate and a third layer of security at the door of the counting hall. The trends, apart from the roundwise results, were shared with citizens through the media. The challenging task of counting was managed within the same day in the 2014 Lok Sabha Election it was a first. 77

85 TRAINING THE DEMOCRATIC FORCES Election management and its delivery in a professional way is a technical and skilled task requiring a sustained capacity development of human resources. In June 2011, the ECI established the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM) an institute specialised in grooming a generation of welltrained and committed human resources in India and abroad, too. challenge of conducting THEelections in India fairly, freely and smoothly is formidable. With about 1.2 billion people and more than 834 million voters, India is not only the largest democracy in the world, but a country known for its cultural, linguistic and ethnic diversity, with a secular and federal polity binding people together. Add to this the geographical diversity, socio-economic variability, vast gaps in information and knowledge awareness, wherein the election officers and workers confronting a colossal task. The preparation of the election personnel is a continuous exercise and requires a continual upgrade of their expertise, improving professionalism and helping to build a positive electoral culture in the country as well as internationally. As the largest democracy of the world, there is an expectation that India should share its unique experience with other democracies and interested countries. So there is a need to promote inter-institutional contacts, and provide technical support and user-friendly resources to election commissions and authorities around the world on request. Realising the importance and the immediacy of the requirement for a distinct institutional initiative on capacity building, research and knowledge management, the ECI started the operations of the IIIDEM in its Nirvachan Sadan premises in New Delhi from mid-2011 onwards, thereby institutionalising international cooperation and goodwill across the globe. 78

86 The Institute is an integral wing of the ECI, and springs from the realisation of modern India s founding fathers and Constitution architects that free, fair, credible and professionally managed elections are the bedrock of democracy. Against this backdrop, the IIIDEM is veritably a realisation of the ECI s aspirations for Indian democracy. It is an instrument for the ECI to continuously keep its tools of election management sharp, ready, and up-to-date. The IIIDEM was envisaged as an advanced resource centre of learning, research, training and extension on participatory democracy and election management. It aims to promote the highest standards of democratic values, principles and practices through capacity building, extension, outreach, research, analysis and knowledge generation and management, thus enabling efficient conduct of free and fair elections and developing mutually beneficial partnerships and collaborations for this purpose, nationally as well as with other Election Management Bodies (EMBs). The IIIDEM functions as a part of the ECI, with the goal to lay a stronger focus on the democratic electoral system and a more professional orientation to its training, outreach and knowledgerelated activities. The main principles of the Institute are as follows: To promote professional competence 79

87 in election management and to raise the levels of awareness, knowledge, connectedness and participation of the stakeholders. To support and supplement the efforts of the ECI and associated formations in carrying out its mandate and function. To enable voter-friendly implementation of the election process by competent, credible and skilled managers, and associated formations. To encourage and promote applied research and publication of papers, journals and books in the field of political science, democracy and election management. To play an active role in affirming for India a place of pride and exemplary leadership in the world. Since its establishment, the IIIDEM has delivered more than 100 domestic and international trainings/seminars/ workshops in the short span of only three years, earning encouraging feedback and acclaim. The Institute has designed technical and analytical training curricula, modules pertaining to electoral systems and for training of electoral personnel. It serves as a specialised resource centre for election-related strategies, approaches, innovations, materials, documents and reports. It conducts programmes in many categories such as the following: Election Trainings for ECI officials: For the elections conducted and the electoral rolls maintained by the ECI. Election Trainings for State Election Commissions (SECs): For the elections conducted by and the electoral rolls maintained by SECs. 80

88 Administrative and Skill Trainings: On administrative, managerial, secretarial, information technology (IT) and related matters. International Trainings: For officials from EMBs of other countries and other international delegates, on matters of democracy and election management. Consultations, Conclaves, Workshops and Seminars: On matters of democracy and election management. The training programmes organised by the IIIDEM are preceded by a Training Needs Assessment (TNA) in order to analyse and understand the competencies and skills needs, to enable the officials to perform better. Based on the TNA, the following three goals are fixed: The Training Goal The Learning Goal The Action Goal Through these goals, the IIIDEM aims to prepare a critical mass of cross-functional teams who work beyond their functional corridors and support election-related personnel at the District level. A major part of the activities at the IIIDEM is framed around electoral periods and they broadly follow the electoral cycle, i.e., Legal Framework, Electoral Planning 81

89 and Implementation, Training and Education, Voter Registration, Electoral Campaign, Voting Operations and Electoral Day, and Verification of Results and Post-Election. The IIIDEM organises Training of Trainers and Facilitators (TTF) at the National and State levels, in which initially senior officials are trained, and they later act as Resource Persons for the Institute. Apart from election-related skills, other components of TTF include presentation and communication skills, creativity, innovation and enterprise, team-building, strategic thinking and problem-solving, dispute resolution skills, project management using technology, leadership, mentoring, interpersonal relationships and supervisory skills, among others. For the 16th General Election to the Lok Sabha, a robust training programme was put in place, at various levels and for different categories of the election machinery involved in the conduct of the election. The IIIDEM devised the Cascaded Training model, which envisages the following levels of training: IIIDEM, SLMTs, ALMTs and then Election Personnel at the District/Assembly Constituency (AC) Level. A large number of courses were 82

90 conducted for training officials on matters of the conduct of the elections and electoral rolls at the IIIDEM as well as at the lower levels of the cascade. These were as follows: Training on the Conduct of Elections Training on the Electoral Roll Training on EVM and VVPAT Training on the Nomination Process Training on the Model Code of Conduct Training on Election Expenditure Monitoring Training on SVEEP and Paid News Training on Vulnerability Mapping, District Election Management Plan (DEMP), the Poll Process and Security Arrangements Training on the Counting Process In this manner, a repository of knowledge on elections and related issues is created at the National, State, District and Assembly Constituency levels with participants such as the District Election Officers, Returning Officers, Zonal Magistrates, Electoral Registration Officers, Assistant Returning Officers, Booth Level Officers, poll personnel, police officials, EVM preparation staff, counting staff, Observers/ The training programmes conducted by the IIIDEM are executed at different levels of election officials. The first level is at the National Level (i.e. at the IIIDEM) wherein the officers from all the States and Union Territories are identified and trained to serve as State-Level Master Trainers (SLMTs). A comprehensive training on various electionrelated laws, procedures and concepts, and related issues is imparted. At the next level of training, State-Level Training Programmes are held wherein the SLMTs train the Assembly- Level Master Trainers (ALMTs). Detailed guidelines, schedules and the procedure for the State- Level Training are issued by the ECI. Provisions for feedback, end-of-training evaluation, the completion report and so on are all part of the Training Programme. At the third and final level, the ALMTs train the election personnel at the District/Assembly levels (i.e., at the grassroots level), where they are responsible for conducting the actual elections. 83

91 Micro-Observers, and videographers. The successful conduct of the General Elections in 2014 and several other State elections was possible due to the comprehensive training programme of the IIIDEM, which provided for uniformity of content, methodologies, educational films, and manuals and compendiums of instructions across all States and Union Territories. The IIIDEM provides technical and professional training to the various SECs in the country. The Institute had supported the Jharkhand SEC in mid in this regard. Such trainings C for constituencies are extended to build the capacities of and support the SECs in conducting the local body elections and other activities. These trainings help to ensure an efficient and professional delivery of the local body elections and harmonise the operations of the ECI and SECs. It also goes a long way in strengthening Indian democracy at its very grassroots. The IIIDEM believes that to manage the complex electoral process in a country of subcontinental dimensions, the knowledge and information of the ECI s internal staff requires continuous motivation, capacity development and upgrade of skills, competencies and expertise. Hence, several courses on Administrative, Service and Conduct Rules, IT, Right to Information (RTI), budget and finance, disciplinary proceedings and related matters, bureaucratic administration and Human Resource Management (HRM), election administration, statistics including its rules and principles, database management

92 drafting and noting, among others, have been organised by the Institute. As a significant part of the ECI s South South Cooperation initiative, the IIIDEM is also mandated to conduct training of EMBs within the overall framework of its International Cooperation programme. Apart from the aforementioned courses, in 2015 the IIIDEM will also be introducing courses on Electoral Reforms, Principles of Democracy and Election Observation. Training curricula and material which have been developed, refined and Since its inception in June 2011, the IIIDEM has conducted 16 international training events and workshops on various aspects of election management, including the following: Nine country-specific training programmes for electoral officials from a single country, such as Kenya, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Nepal and the Maldives. Seven multi-lateral training programmes including membernations of the South Asian Association for Regional Countries (SAARC) and Commonwealth countries. There are certain training programmes, such as India s Technical & Economic Cooperation Programme (ITEC) and Special Commonwealth Assistance for Africa Programme (SCAAP), which are done in active collaboration with funding support from the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. The basic curriculum for the international courses followed at the Institute was designed by a joint task force comprising senior members of the ECI and the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), Washington, USA. The curriculum was based on inputs from various sources including BRIDGE. For international programmes, six modules have been prepared. These are as follows: Basic Course on Election Management Voter Registration Voter Education Technology in Election Management Inclusive Voting Grievance Redressal Mechanism

93 used, have received high praise and appreciation. From the establishment of the IIIDEM till now, senior officials and commissioners from EMBs of many countries have participated in various capacity-building programmes at the IIIDEM. These countries include Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, Belize, Bhutan, Botswana, Cambodia, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Georgia, Ghana, Granada, Guyana, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Lesotho, Mongolia, Malawi, Malaysia, the Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Palestine, Panama, Samoa, Sierra Leone, South Africa, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, St. Lucia, Tajikistan, Tanzania, the Gambia, Tonga, Tuvalu, Uganda, Yemen and Zambia. For conducting the training programmes, the IIIDEM has both regular and visiting faculty drawn from Indian States and Union Territories as well as international faculty of high calibre and repute, coming from organisations such as the South Asian University, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing, the Commonwealth Electoral Network, and other such organisations. The ECI/IIIDEM has signed MoUs with the UNDP, IFES and International IDEA (Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance) for experience sharing and extending the outreach of the Institute for the benefit of the democratic world. The Institute sends electoral experts to EMBs of countries that request such training, with the purpose of capacitybuilding of their resource persons and master trainers. 86

94 The IIIDEM conducts consultative conclaves, workshops, seminars and talks on matters related to democracy and election management, which goes a long way in the constructive evolution of democracy and electoral practices as well as in further strengthening their roots. For example, in December 2013, the IIIDEM organised a seminar on Election Laws and Reforms in collaboration with the Centre for Parliamentary Studies and Training (CPST), of the Kerala Legislative Assembly with participation of MLAs, leaders of political parties, senior bureaucrats and media personnel. A workshop on Election Expenditure Monitoring: Challenges in Intelligence Gathering and Sharing 87

95 was organised jointly with the Multi-Disciplinary School of Economic Intelligence (MDSEI), Mumbai, in January A consultation was organised on the Democratic and Political Evolution in India along with scholars and professors from Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), the Jamia Millia Islamia University, the Institute of Social Sciences (ISS) and the UNDP, to fine-tune the course module, validate its content and make it more trainee-centric. In November 2014, the IIIDEM organised a national seminar on Youth United for Voter Awareness (YUVA), aimed at enhancing the understanding of the role of youth in democracy and to evolve appropriate strategies to promote youth participation in democracy. The seminar witnessed the participation of representatives from the National Service Scheme (NSS), the Nehru Yuvak Kendra Sangathan (NYKS), the National Cadet Corps (NCC), the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs, the Bharat Scouts and Guides, the Young Women s Christian Association (YWCA), the Young Men s Christian Association (YMCA), the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) and the UNDP as well as Masters and PhD scholars from Jamia Millia Islamia University. The IIIDEM is deemed as a specialised agency that has the necessary wherewithal for conducting training in a systematic manner across the country. The Institute is fully conversant with the election system and processes of the country and has the expertise and tools to deliver training in a coordinated and focused manner. As a resource agency, the IIIDEM evaluates its performance through the following indicators: Individual level: Perceptible improvement in knowledge, attitude, skills, behaviour and values of the electoral personnel. Organisational level: Marked 88

96 improvements in systems, procedures and operations. Structural level: Improvement in policy, planning, legislation and reforms, leading to healthier power relations and a friendlier voting process. Voter Participation level: Overall increase in the number and level of women and youth participating in the elections, and reduction in the number of missing voters. International level: Improvement in the quality of the electoral system in countries where the IIIDEM is a partner. In order to meet the growing demand and to deliver against the need for training and outreach as well as the associated requirements of knowledge management and development of training material needed, the IIIDEM will be functioning out of an independent campus. The development of a full-fledged campus of the IIIDEM is underway in Dwarka, Delhi, for its operability as well as for establishing its identity in a visibly recognisable way. The IIIDEM aims to promote social participation and professional competence in election management, and supports and supplements the efforts of the ECI in carrying out its mandate and functions in a more effective manner. In the years to come, the Institute will strive to make valuable contributions to a strong, stable and mature electoral culture in the country as well as globally. 89

97 A CLEAN SVEEP It was a campaign that swept the country, mapped out to increase the engagement of the citizens with the democratic process. It was designed to impart information, change attitudes, enhance inclusion, motivate action, and facilitate voters in order to maximise electoral participation. It had an apt acronym: SVEEP (Systematic Voter s Education and Electoral Participation). Voter participation is the lifeblood of elections and ensuring it became an integral part of election management. landmark initiative by the ECI, A SVEEP was conceived to enhance people s participation in the electoral process through enrolment in the electoral rolls and through voting on poll days. Historically, the turnout in national elections has hovered below 60 per cent, showing that a massive 40 per cent of the electorate do not vote. This was seen as a democracy deficit by the ECI and steps were taken to increase people s participation in the elections. A democracy can be successful only with the participation of each and every eligible voter in the election process. That is why voter registration and the education of the electorate about the voting process are essential to the election process and its management. However, in a country as populous and diverse as India, there is an information deficit in terms of what voters know and what they need to know about many aspects of the electoral process, such as voter registration, Elector Photo Identity Cards (EPICs), polling station locations, the use of EVMs, the timings of the poll, the injunctions of the Model Code of Conduct, and the use of money and muscle power and other lures by candidates to unlawfully influence vulnerable voters. Moreover, there were motivational and facilitation issues. It was to address all these issues that SVEEP was launched. In our country, as many as 26 per cent of Indians are still illiterate.* These large segments of illiterate voters also cast their valuable votes. 90 * From Census 2011 data based on

98 It is in the national interest, and a country-wide endeavour, that every voter should know the direct relationship between his/her vote, and the political and economic conditions in the country. Every voter should understand that his/her decision in the form of the vote is valuable. In 2010, the ECI had adopted the theme: Greater Participation for a Stronger Democracy. Beginning in the Jharkhand and Bihar Assembly elections with Information, Education and Communication (IEC) initiatives, the programme was then revamped as SVEEP. The elections for the Legislative Assemblies in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam, West Bengal and Puducherry in 2011, were among the first learning grounds for SVEEP, followed by the State elections in Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat in The Chhattisgarh, Tripura, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Rajasthan and Delhi elections in 2013 further helped in improving the SVEEP programmes, underlining the conscious effort to bring voter awareness and education to the centre stage of election management and allocate it the necessary priority and resources. With each step forward, systematic innovations of one election got adopted as policy guidelines in subsequent elections, and over the years SVEEP institutions used various initiatives in a strategic, scientific and synergistic manner

99 The SVEEP programme is implemented at different levels. At the National level, the SVEEP Division of the ECI formulates policies and the framework, while carrying on continuous and collaborative interactions with the voting public, civil society groups and the media. At the State level, in each CEO s office, an officer is in charge of the SVEEP programme in the State helped by core groups, with representatives from educational institutions, youth organisations, women s organisations and civil society groups in evolving and implementing SVEEP initiatives. At the District level, the District Collector (who is usually the DEO) leads the execution of the SVEEP programme. A district SVEEP committee, usually headed by the Chief Executive Officer of the Zila Parishad or the Chief Development Officer or the DEO himself or herself, oversees the implementation of SVEEP in the District. A problem can be fixed only when one comprehends it, so studies and surveys to understand the voter were carried in the States and UTs. These revealed the reasons for the gaps in registration and voting, which needed to be addressed. A mapping was done of the areas and the segments of the population that displayed low electoral participation. While there were reasons and gaps that were specific to different States and UTs, there were also common gaps detected in these surveys. The ECI carefully analysed the findings, laid down strategies based on them and worked out action plans for effective execution by framing policies, drawing out detailed plans and coordinating their implementation at the ground level. The ECI carried out dialogues with stakeholders to devise broad strategies and plans for the 2014 Lok Sabha Election. The communication initiatives were critical as a lot depended on getting the right information across in the most effective way. Facilitation was even more crucial as any generation in demand had to be matched and supplemented by supplyside measures. Close monitoring and review were integrated in the planning process itself so that mid-course corrections could be made to ensure 92

100 the selection of the best practices that would fulfil the objectives of the SVEEP programmes. Collaboration was the secret of success. The ECI connected with educational institutions and youth organisations to reach out specifically to the young voters. The ECI also worked with Central and State government departments such as the departments of health, education and rural development, among others, piggybacking on their existing programmes by integrating voter education with them, and utilising their already ongoing outreach activities and field functionaries for spreading voter awareness. Government and private media as well as NGOs were the important partners that helped the SVEEP programmes reach the populace. Interestingly, in 2013 the ECI had begun collaborating with the NLMA (National Literacy Mission Authority). This had ensured that electoral literacy became part of the Government s Sakshar Bharat Programme. Further, the ECI also partnered with the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) for voter education. Young student leaders volunteered as campus ambassadors to help implement SVEEP initiatives in their respective educational institutions. So infectious was the enthusiasm that even private media houses and corporates extended their support to SVEEP programmes. The ECI also invited men and women of substance to help get participation messages across. These icons, through appearances in electronic media and in print, motivated people to participate in the 2014 General Elections. 93

101 In order to reach out to the largest number of people possible, in 2011, the ECI instituted the National Voters Day (NVD) on its foundation day, 25 January. It is the day when the founding fathers of the Indian Constitution gave to their people the Election Commission of India, with the mandate of superintendence, direction and control of elections. NVD is celebrated at five levels: Central, State, District, Assembly Constituency and the polling station levels. Brief public ceremonies are held at each level, in which the highlight is the distribution of EPICs among the new voters of the local polling station areas. The Booth Level Officers felicitate the newly registered voters in their respective polling station areas and hand over their EPICs. All persons who have attained the age of 18 and are present there, are registered as new electors and presented with a badge with the slogan: Proud to be a Voter Ready to Vote. The main aim of the day is to develop a sense of accountable citizenship among voters. In keeping with this sentiment, the ECI felicitated all the newly eligible registered voters in more than 6,00,000 polling station areas on National Voters Day. The young voters also took an oath to strengthen democracy by taking part in the elections. They celebrated their new franchise with symposiums, seminars, cycle rallies, marathons and other activities. Additionally, active and responsible senior voters were identified in some States/Districts and requested to share their experiences with new voters. They were also honoured during the public function. These events were expected to give the youth and other new voters who had entered the rolls a sense of engagement and their own identity as responsible citizens whose decision mattered. It also motivated them to exercise their franchise freely, fairly and fearlessly. 94

102 ICONIC INSPIRATION For progress, for welfare, for happiness cast your vote this time and every time. A.P.J. ABDUL KALAM All elections are important and it s the duty of each individual to cast his vote and be connected to the democracy. AAMIR KHAN There is a bigger match (than the World Cup), in which you can show your power. That is the elections. This is your real power; use it. M.S. DHONI Winning this Olympic medal was a dream, when I got a chance, I grabbed it... At 18 you will get a chance, the chance to vote. Don t miss it. M.C. MARY KOM We will win if every youth enrols for the voter ID. SAINA NEHWAL 95

103 The SVEEP intervention for the Lok Sabha Election was rolled out sufficiently ahead of the elections. However, after the announcement, the activities were further intensified. A special campaign was organised at every polling station and people were invited to get enrolled, or check their names on the electoral roll, if they were already enrolled. Helplines were activated and the media was loaded with promotional messages. Mass mobilisation activities and events were organised to connect with voters, and model polling stations were set up. Every possible platform was used, every possible space occupied, every possible event used to spread voter awareness and motivate people to cast their vote. SVEEP initiated measures to connect with voters through facilitation: these included voters helplines, Internet and SMS search in the voters list, EVM familiarisation camps, voter slips, and the expansion of the I-Card basket for valid identity proofs. Both traditional and innovative methods were employed in the SVEEP programmes. Human chains, sometimes linear, sometimes in the shape of India, processions and rallies that carried the message of participation out on the roads, street plays in which the young and old joined hands, watched by local crowds, bicycle and motocycle rallies, and candle marches in several towns were some of the activities organised. Every village, every town and every community has its own effective methods of communication, and these were tapped to get the message across effectively. For instance, even the local wrestling arena was used as a platform for spreading the message of voter participation. In many cities, kites carried the messages of participation right from the earth to the skies. Schoolchildren became important messengers, participating in activities such as drawing contests, and carrying voter awareness right into their houses and to their families. All means of transport right from bullock carts to helicopters were seen as display platforms for participation messages. Folk music and dance performances were also used to get the national message across. Attractive hoardings with punchy, action-oriented messages were put up to urge citizens to vote. 96

104 97

105 The 2014 elections put the spotlight right on its large youth population. A young electorate eager for opportunity, keen on public discourse and following their collective concerns, was expected to play a pivotal role in the elections. Historically, voter turnout among young voters has been substantially lower than the average turnout. The 2014 Lok Sabha Election reflected the peak of India s electoral demographic dividend with 10 per cent of voters likely to be first-time voters, as shown by a combination of electoral and demographic data. The Summary Revision data of 2013 showed that 23 million year-olds had been enrolled to vote. Additionally, the analysis of Census data showed that there were 120 million people aged at the time of the 2011 Census, which made them too young to vote in 2009, but eligible to vote in These potential first-time voters formed as much as 10 per cent of the population.** Phone-ins, broadcast messages, motivating messages by men and women of substance encouraged young people across the country to make their presence felt by participating in the elections. Campus ambassadors and NSS volunteers played a big role in the campaigns that raised awareness and helped students to enrol, and later, participate in the voting process. Several places frequented by young people saw short plays or street naataks being performed. T-shirts were painted with election-oriented slogans and worn around campuses. In most States, quizzes, debates and discussions flourished to target first-time voters to present their views and enthuse other young people to think, decide and vote. Walls of Democracy were erected in different institutes where students congregated and signed on the wall as a written promise to participate in the elections. Sports competitions, cricket matches and other sport activities were also organised across all States and Union Territories to catch another niche group among the youth. Music, another passion of the youth, also became a tool to create awareness and inspiration. From races to air shows, 98 **All data cited from Systematic Voters Education & Electoral Participation (Indian National Document ( ), pgs

106 from kabaddi matches to rallies, many different kinds of focus events were organised to attract young voters to the message of participation. In many venues, young electors raised their hands and took vows to vote, while in some other places, they walked or ran marathons to show that they were up to speed where the elections were concerned. Many student volunteers went door-to-door to explain the importance of voting to people and to motivate them to vote in the elections. 99

107 Women, who form 49 per cent of the total population of the country, have traditionally lagged behind men in electoral participation. Boosting electoral participation among women has been the primary SVEEP objective, since the very inception of this programme. The massive efforts undertaken in SVEEP to enhance electoral participation of women yielded big dividends. From going house to house and using local festivals as awareness platforms, from organising rangoli contests to pledge-taking ceremonies, SVEEP took the message of participation to women at every level. Street plays were performed; human chains were organised;tthe ethnic art of rangoli saw a new avatar in novel designs to communicate messages related to the elections; special events were organised to familiarize women with the EVMs; and exhibitions and displays were set up with photographs, posters and paintings explaining details of the electoral process. From college students to great-grandmothers, they came out in droves to vote, taking women turnout to the highest ever among all Lok Sabha Elections to date. It was the emergence of a new constituency: Women. In the past, women voters might have been marginalised in politics, it has been said, because they tended to vote in lower numbers than men. In the 2014 Lok Sabha Elections, more women than ever before come out to vote, in clear awareness of the fact that their vote does matter. The gender-wise pattern of voting in the 2014 elections was path-breaking. In the backdrop of a significant increase 100

108 in the overall voter turnout from per cent in 2009 to per cent in 2014 at the all-india level, there was a remarkable closing of the gender gap between men and women voters: at 1.55 percentage points (compared to 4.42 in 2009), it was the lowest ever to date. The percentage of male turnout was per cent, while per cent female voters cast their ballot. In some States, the percentage of women voters surpassed that of men voting. This was not such a new phenomenon in States in the North East such as Manipur, Meghalaya and Sikkim, but it was definitely happening for the very first time in States such as Bihar, Rajasthan, Punjab, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and Uttarakhand. The process had been unfolding in the post-2009 phase of the Assembly elections in different States. About 55.8 percent of eligible female voters had cast their votes in 2009, compared with 58 per cent of total registered voters. Prior to 2009 the narrowest gender gap was in at

109 The 2014 Lok Sabha Election stood out for the ECI s efforts to include sections and communities of society earlier marginalised in the voting process. Some were made to feel welcome much more than before and their participation encouraged and facilitated, while others were persuaded to join in for the first time. Transgenders, tribal communites, senior citizens and the physically challenged were only some of the groups who became an inseparable part of the democratic process. Despite the ECI s directions for registering transgenders under Others, the number of people registered under this category had been small. A SVEEP drive to encourage the third genders to participate in the elections was carried out in all States and UTs. In more ways than one, the 2014 Lok Sabha Election was a historic one. The poll process was completely differently-abled-friendly, with ramps, separate queues and Brailleenabled voting machines that allowed differently-abled voters to enjoy the same rights as others when it came to the voting process. 102

110 A wheelchair stationed at every polling station was a blessing for senior citizens who turned up enthusiastically to vote. The ECI made extensive arrangements to have wheelchairs at every polling station for the 2014 Lok Sabha Election. In some polling constituencies, battery-operated rickshaws were also made available to make it easier for the elderly to come to cast their vote. An account of SVEEP cannot be complete without a mention of voter mascots for electoral awareness. Election managers used folk culture and characters well, by creating special mascots for carrying voter education and awareness messages. Dressed in regional attire, these colourful mascots spouted interesting slogans, and enjoyed great voter appeal. The Dakshin Kannada District in Karnataka designed its own voter mascot called Babanna (right), which become very visible and popular during the 2014 Lok Sabha Election. In West Bengal, the DEOs developed District-specific mascots: Red Panda, Mrigababu and Votuda in Darjeeling, Nadia and Jalpaiguri Districts respectively. Similarly, a mascot Mr Votu by a CSO (Civil Society Organisation) was used to attract voters to programmes and roadshows in Delhi. 103

111 THE SHOMPENS MAKE A CHOICE For the first time in the country s history, the Shompens took part in the poll process. The Shompens themselves are quite unique. They are one of the last surviving Stone-Age tribes and they live in Great Nicobar, in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. They cast their votes to elect the Lok Sabha candidate from the Bay Islands. Two out of 211 members (according to the 2011 Census) of the tribe voted at the exclusive polling station set up in the interior jungles in the Great Nicobar Biosphere reserve. The Shompens, one of the six tribes that inhabit the forest at the southernmost tip of the country, voted after awareness campaigns and trainings on EVMs were carried out for them. The members of the Shompen tribe, who only occasionally come out of the jungle, were curious to see the EVM. TALWARA MIGRANTS CAST THEIR VOTE In Jammu and Kashmir, after a hiatus of 16 years, more than 1,400 Talwara migrants in the Reasi District voted in the 2014 General Elections. These migrants had moved from interior places in the State in 1998, subsequent to which they had not voted in any elections. Polling booths for the 900 migrant families were erected at Arnas, Prankote, Tulibana Mahore and Chassna, and other locations of Gulabgarh and Gool-Arnas Assembly Constituencies. Voter slips were distributed at their doorsteps a week before poll day. Election officials held meetings in the community to motivate them to vote at the villages from where they had migrated more than a decade and a half ago. 104

112 SEEKING THE SATIPATIS The District of Dang in Gujarat is a largely tribal district with 94 per cent tribal population. Migrating landless people here had been a challenge to the District administration, when it came to implementing voter education programmes. Besides, the Satipati Sampradaya here has had a history of dissociating from Government programmes, not even registering for ration cards. Their belief is that Nature will provide for them. There were more than 3,000 eligible voters in the sect, who did not participate in the election process. The District administration approached them persistently and were able to convince a few families to get themselves registered as voters. The administration was able to make them aware of the fact that the EPIC could also facilitate them to avail the benefits of various Government programmes. The administration did not try to refute the sect s beliefs nor manipulate them. They used the services of the recently appointed Government employees who belonged to the sect. About 2,500 Satipatis were enrolled in Dang District after a massive door-to-door campaign to convince them. Guinness Book Limca Book 105

113 USE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY & EVMS The 2014 Lok Sabha Election will be remembered for its appropriate and forward-looking employment of information and digital technology to make the election process faster, easier, smoother and more foolproof than ever before. It made the management of the mammoth task much more efficient. of the major steps initiated ONE by the ECI for the 2014 General Elections was to optimise the use of Information and Digital Technology (IT) in the electoral processes of the country. It is universally accepted that these technologies provide speed, quality and transparency to electoral processes. No wonder all democratic nations in the world are seriously engaging such technologies for enhancing the transparency and quality of the delivery system. The use of technology reduces the interface with human beings, who may sometimes be biased, causing unwarranted issues. Keeping in step with global aspirations, the ECI had been strongly in favour of introducing EVMs and VVPAT in the country s election process. Further, the ECI s IT division conceptualised 32 major IT applications that aided, complemented 106

114 and strengthened the election process during the 2014 General Elections. These IT applications were visualised keeping in mind the following parameters: Determining and prioritising the drivers that form the basis of an implementation strategy Technology and delivery parameters to facilitate implementation options that would be easy to understand and handle by people and officials Adopting the single release approach or the multiple incremental releases approach based on an integration of the role of the ECI and States/UTs Quantified evaluation mechanism of approved implementation options with risk analysis. The various IT applications used during the 2014 General Elections are as follows: The system for Poll- Day Monitoring was used through Mobile Web Interface techniques. Formatted messages were collected from each of the approximately one million polling stations at the District headquarters and the compiled information was submitted to the database for close monitoring. If the updates did not reach within a specified period of time, then alerts were sent to the higher authorities. The system is automated and refined to handle large volumes of sms. The CEO s office could, at any given time, access the full dataset and customised reports for their use in decision-making. This system was developed as a kind of health check of voter lists. It checks the status of the appointment of the BLO/BLA, finds the progress of EPIC and Population-to-Elector Ratio percentage, analyses roll revision activity, finds age cohortwise information and generates Management Information System (MIS) Reports. 107

115 A people-oriented facility, this system provided a single-window common interface to the citizens for submitting their complaints. The system forwards the complaints to the appropriate authority and keeps the user informed about the progress. A mini callcentre activity is also attached with this application. A full-fledged call centre based on the experience of handling this application is also being proposed for future elections. A one-stop information centre for voters, this web-based module helps users find the location of their polling station on Google Maps. The names of election officials with their contact numbers and addresses is also displayed for respective polling booths. The electoral roll of that polling station is also linked for display to the user. The framework for the webcasting of video coverage picked up from within and around the polling booth a (through camera-mounted moving cars) has been created using free-source services from the Web. This live webcast keeps a check on untoward activities and helps in ensuring complete transparency in the voting process. This application may be used for enhancing voter awareness as well. IT comes to the aid of election monitoring with this online monitoring and tracking system for election expenditure accounts lodged by the candidates. This system checks if the accounts are correct and if they are submitted in the manner prescribed by the Ministry of Law and Justice. It also helps in tracking further actions taken by the ECI against defaulting candidates and the 108

116 response given by the candidates. The application software helps officials to analyse data by generating State-wise, District-wise or Assembly- Constituency-wise reports and for sending summary reports of details of the candidates contesting the elections, to the concerned officer in State and ECI through sms. Some reports, besides the affidavits submitted by candidates, are also available for the public to view on the website. These are: Online monitoring of expenditure accounts lodged by the candidates Online tracking of actions initiated against a defaulting candidate by the ECI, such as notices, hearings, disqualifications and so on The DEO s first and summary reports, and supplementary report, if any Comments on reports by the ECI, the CEO and the DEO. This application is used by the Observer Planning and Election Material Section of the ECI for Personal Information System (PIS) details of officers who can be deployed as Observers with their Nodal Officer s details, the schedule of the elections, creation of slots and various reports for the deployment of Observers. Using this IT application, Observers are allocated, de-allocated, reserved or exempted. Attendance of Observers during briefings may also also recorded. Various letters like those for appointment, briefings, absentee notices, exemptions, among others, can be printed by respective sections in the ECI. Using this application, Observers can update their PIS as well as fill and upload various reports for online submission to the ECI. They can view 109

117 important instructions from the ECI via the noticeboard as well as their latest deployment status and the record of their past deployment duties. The ECI and State-level officers can access the reports filled and uploaded by Observers for the current and previous elections. They can also send important instructions on the Observers noticeboard, which will be communicated to them via sms as well. They can also access details of information about contesting candidates. This application is provided to the CEO, DEO and RO of the Assembly Constituencies of the poll-going States for uploading or updating information such as the details of candidates, electors and polling stations. Various reports for monitoring the progress of data entry at the DEO and CEO level are also available. It also enables passwordresetting options in the hierarchy for example, the option for resetting it for the RO/AC user is available with the DEO level and that for the DEO/PC user is available at the CEO level. This is very helpful in handling issues arising out of the transfer of officials. This application was provided at all the counting centres on counting day for the dissemination of trends and results. Round-wise schedule data, round-wise votes polled against 110

118 each candidate for all rounds, and postal ballot votes polled against each candidate are entered, and at regular intervals, trends and results are declared through numbers, bar charts and pie charts. Various reports are provided for monitoring the progress of data entry at the DEO/ CEO level. Round-wise data collected from counting centres through IT applications is stored in a database from which information is displayed through static pages on the ECI website. Since a large numbers of hits were expected, in order to prevent the website from crashing, these pages were disseminated through Content Delivery Network (CDN), a technique that can provide information to millions of users in a very short time. Depending on the number of hits, CDNs have the capability to expand or contract the number of servers through which the data is being served to the user. The website nic.in was used to disseminate the trends and results on counting day to the general public. The total hits on the website totalled about 16 billion! This was the largest number of hits ever observed on a single website in a day, in the world. The best part was that the website survived the load as also a good number of attacks, without failing for even a fraction of a second a fact appreciated by all users. 111

119 If one were to keep track of all the lakhs of Ballot Units (BUs) and Control Units (CUs) in the country only on paper, it would be a complicated exercise, and one prone to error. The EVM-tracking entry application was developed for creating a centralised database for CUs and BUs distributed across the States and UTs. This application allows tracking of CUs and BUs and Ballot Unit and their location, and the facility to create and enter their warehouse details and stock entry. Once the data is entered, the transfer of a CU or BU does not require reentry of data. The application also keeps a check on duplicate entries in all the warehouses across the country. Further, various status messages for CUs and BUs are provided. The transfer of a machine can be initiated by authorised personnel at the State, District and warehouse levels, using source and destination information. For the purpose of the elections, the CUs and BUs sent to the polling stations are randomised at two different levels. The machines which are working and successfully passed at both the first-level and second-level checks are sent to the polling stations. This is the IT tool that provides a dashboard of consolidated information, tools and timely reports to officers engaged in the election monitoring process at all hierarchical levels right from top to bottom. This is essential since many processes and cycles function during the elections. The major activities can be broadly categorised as follows: Pre-poll Poll day Post-poll Trends and results Consolidation (and post-poll statistical analysis) At present, the proliferation and consolidation of information right from the National level down to the District level, is managed within the dashboard. In future, this will be taken down to the poll-booth level for a complete, 360-degree permeation. The views are presented through 112

120 tables, graphics and maps, to present exact, thematic, observance and drilldown reporting to help speed up the process of decision-making. With financial support from the Department of Electronics and IT, Government of India, and implementation support from CDAC, the National Level Electoral Search IT tool has been developed for use by the common citizen to find their name in the electoral roll and get to know the polling booth where they are expected to cast their votes during elections. This IT application has been developed keeping in mind a very large database (Big Data) and multilingualism. It also takes care of the pronunciation of named entities, based on different regions, while searching. Curently, the electoral roll data has about 820 million records. The simple and intelligent interface can accept the minimum modicum of information such as a single name, and give multiple records, based on which the user may search further. If there are more inputs and keywords for the search, such as relation type, relation name, State name, constituency name and so on, the search will bring more exact results. Geographical information such as the address can also be provided using the app, provided on the front end itself with a zoom-in/zoom-out feature. 113

121 ELECTRONIC VOTING MACHINES (EVMs) In the first two Lok Sabha Elections held in 1952s and 1957, the system of casting vote was that each candidate was allotted a ballot box and the voters exercised their franchise by dropping a common ballot paper in the ballot box pertaining to the candidate of their choice. This simple system worked well, but it evoked a doubt in the mind of stakeholders about possible tampering with the ballot box. Thereafter, the Marking System on ballot papers was introduced during the mid-term elections to the Legislative Assemblies of Kerala and Orissa in The marking system of voting continued till the 1999 Lok Sabha Election. The ECI, in order to improve the electoral system, started considering the introduction of some kind of electronic machine for recording votes in an error-free manner that would totally remove the possibility of invalid votes. Mr S.L. Shikdhar, the then Chief Election Commissioner in December, 1977, while on tour at Hyderabad, requested the Electronics Corporation of India Limited, Hyderabad (ECIL) to study the feasibility of electronic gadgets for conducting elections. Then, Bharat Electronics Limited, Bangalore (BEL) approached the ECI in January 1981, for manufacturing EVMs as they had already developed a micro-computer-based voting equipment for use in the elections for the various Unions of the company. On 29 July 1981, the ECI held a meeting with the representatives of the BEL, ECIL, the Ministry of Law and some of the CEOs regarding the use of the gadget at elections. As an experimental measure, the ECI introduced EVMs in 50 polling stations in the 70-Parur Assembly Constituency in the Assembly elections to the Legislative Assembly of Kerala held on 19 May EVMs were used in 11 Assembly Constituencies between However, this was challenged in Court and the use of EVMs was struck down as there was no law allowing their use in elections. The law was amended by the Parliament in December 1988 and a new section 61A was inserted in the R.P. Act, 1951, empowering the ECI to use voting machines. The Central Government appointed the Electoral Reforms Committee (Dinesh Goswami Committee) in January 1990, comprising representatives of several recognized National and State Parties. This Committee felt that the machines should be tested 114

122 by technical experts to remove any doubts in the minds of the public about the credibility of the working of the machines, and constituted an Expert Committee comprising the chairmanship of Prof. S. Sampath, Chairman TAC, Defence Research & Development Organization, Ministry of Defence, Prof. P.V. Indiresan of the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, and Dr Rao C. Kasarabada, Director, ER & DC, Thiruvananthapuram, for the evaluation of the Electronic Voting Machines. The Committee, after a review of the material presented to it, technical presentation by the manufacturers, meeting election administrators and technical experts as well as detailed laboratory tests, concluded that the EVM was a secure system. The expert committee, therefore, unanimously recommended, in April 1990, the use of EVMs as soon as possible. 115

123 From November 1998 onwards, EVMs have been used in various elections as follows: EVMs were used in 45 Parliamentary Constituencies spread over 15 States and UTs during the 1999 Lok Sabha Elections EVMs were used in all Assembly Constituencies in the General Elections to the State Legislative Assemblies, viz., Goa in 1999 and Kerala, Pondicherry, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Jammu and Kashmir, and Gujarat in Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Mizoram and NCT of Delhi in Maharashtra in Jharkhand, Haryana and Bihar in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Puducherry in Goa, Manipur, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh in Chhattisgarh, Meghalaya, Tripura, Nagaland, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, NCT of Delhi and Rajasthan in In all bye-elections to the Lok Sabha and Legislative Assembly held after November In 2005, the ECI decided to incorporate additional security measures and features in the new models and new-version EVMs, i.e., Real-time clock, Time stamping of each vote Time-logging of events Alphanumeric display for better display Status display the battery Facility of the EVM to go to power-save mode when not in use Braille-signage features on the BU for literate visually challenged electors. The ECI again constituted a Technical Expert Committee in December, 2005, comprising Prof. P.V. Indiresan, Prof. D.T. Shahani of IIT Delhi and Prof. A.K. Agarwala of IIT Delhi to get the new version of EVMs evaluated before finally accepting these machines for actual use. The Expert Committee in its report certified that the EVM system was tamper-proof when due precautions were taken. The Committee recommended in their report that the new-version EVMs with suggested modifications, testing and operating precautions, like EMI/ EMC, dynamic key coding and data storage methods, might be accepted and put to use. The requirements were fulfilled by the manufacturers of EVM. Beginning the use of EVMs in a phased manner from 1998, the ECI switched to electronic voting 116

124 universally in Thereafter, ballot boxes were not used in any election. To meet the requirement for EVMs in all polling stations in the 2009 Lok Sabha Election, EVMs were procured as under: No. of polling stations, including auxiliary polling stations: 8,38,649 No. of EVMs available with the ECI: BUs: 13,95,430; CUs: 13,68,430 No. of EVMs blocked in Court cases: BUs: 78,774; CUs: 76,781 Net EVMs available for use: BUs: 13,16,656; CUs:12,91,649 Since the ECI had decided to use EVMs in all the constituencies during the 2009 Lok Sabha Election, the CEOs of all States/UTs were asked to identify Nodal Officers at the State level as well as the District level for all the matters relating to EVMs. The manufacturers of the EVMs, i.e., BEL and ECIL, had also been asked to identify Nodal Officers for each State/UT for providing all necessary assistance on EVM matters (firstlevel checking of EVMs, repairing of defective EVMs, preparation of EVMs and training in the use of EVMs. The DEOs were assigned the responsibility of spreading awareness in remote and rural areas about voting using EVMs. The CEOs had prepared audio-visual campaign materials in the respective vernacular languages for the purpose of better dissemination of information about EVM voting. As the process of filing of nominations, scrutiny and withdrawal of candidatures was advancing for various phases of the 2009 General Elections, it was noticed that in various States, the number of candidates contesting in the Parliamentary as well as Assembly constituencies (where simultaneous poll was taking place) exceeded more than 16, 32 and even 48 in some cases. This led to a crisis-like situation as with the increase in the number of contesting candidates, the demand for additional BUs soared. One BU can accommodate 16 candidates. Hence, one more ballot unit was required where 117

125 the number of candidates went up to more than 16. Similarly, three BUs were needed where the number of candidates exceeded 32. If one compares the trend of more than 16 candidates during the Lok Sabha Elections in 1999, 2004 and 2009, the situation during the 2009 Lok Sabha Election appeared to be alarming and unexpected. A comparative statement on the number of candidate in various Lok Sabha Elections is as below: 1999 Lok Sabha Election More than 16 but less than 32: 25 More than 32 but less than 48: Lok Sabha Election More than 16 but less than 32: 28 More than 32 but less than 48: Lok Sabha Election More than 16 but less than 32: 146 More than 32 but less than 48: 9 The above status of number of candidates for various constituencies, which directly affected the requirement of the BUs as well as EVMs, was closely monitored. The ECI, then, took a number of initiatives, which included: The Constitution of a core team in the ECI as well as in the office of the CEOs of all the States and Union Territories. A thorough inventory of the EVMs available was made and compiled. This team had made an immediate review of the number of polling stations and auxiliary polling stations State-wise and Parliamentary 118

126 Constituency (PC)-wise, the number of CUs available within the State and Parliamentary Constituency, training reserves and deployment reserves, and the number of BUs required PC-wise after the last date of withdrawal in the corresponding PC. The PC-wise excess availability or shortage of BUs and the State aggregate of the BUs available (along with excess or shortage) was assessed. As the scenario in each phase emerged, the response requirement was made through the shifting of unused EVMs from the States or the Districts where the requirement had been fulfilled or from the States/ Districts where the poll was to be held in later phases. BEL and ECIL had developed a response protocol and ensured additional manpower, which was already in place so that the interventions could be made wherever needed at short notice. The reserve position was reviewed with reference to the availability of CUs and BUs in terms of District/PC at the CEO level to ensure that inter- District coordination for transporting EVMs, by transferring surplus BUs obtained by lowering the margin of reserve from one phase to other phase. In case of shortage in States, movement from other States was also made. The reduction in the requirement of CUs and BUs to four per cent and two per cent of the reserve level respectively was done, for training and actual deployment. The reduction of the poll-day reserves, depending on the terrain, was done and CUs and BUs were made available with the Sector Officers at a central location for quick mobilisation and redeployment wherever required. The State Election Commission s EVMs were deployed in some States after examination by the ECI. The work of shifting EVMs to meet the requirement in different States and UTs based on the number 119

127 of polling stations and other factors, such as geographical conditions, past history and so on, was taken up well in advance, starting in the first fortnight of January 2009 and before the announcement of the Elections on 2 March More than a lakh EVMs were shifted during the elections. It was too difficult to shift the EVMs midway in the elections, as there was little time for shifting EVMs from one State to another. For the smooth shifting of EVMs, the help of the Ministry of Railway was sought, with the arrangement of parcel vans, as airlifting of EVMs for was not an economical option. After the 2009 Lok Sabha Elections, the ECI had taken note of certain news reports and advertisements on the vulnerability of the EVMs to tampering. Further, the ECI had received some communications from individuals and political parties, bringing up the possibility of manipulation of the EVMs. Some petitions had been filed before the Hon ble Supreme Court of India and three High Courts, namely, Madras High Court, Bombay High Court and High Court of Madhya Pradesh (Jabalpur Bench). These petitions also raised allegations about the possibility of tampering with EVMs during manufacturing or operation of the machine. The ECI was entirely satisfied with the non-tamperability of EVMs, as no one had been able to demonstrate that EVMs used by the ECI could be tampered with or manipulated. The EVM in India is a fully standalone machine without being part of any network and with no provision for any input. The software in the EVM chip is One Time Programmable 120

128 (OTP) or masked and is burnt into the chip at the time of manufacturing. In addition, elaborate administrative measures and procedural checks are in place to make the EVM doubly safe against any possible tampering or misuse. At the same time, the ECI was fully alive to its onerous responsibility of not allowing even the tiniest modicum of doubt to exist about any aspect of its operation. The ECI went the extra distance by inviting all those who had expressed reservations about the EVM to come and demonstrate the points made in their allegations. The demonstration was scheduled at the headquarters of the ECI in the first week of August But none of them turned up to actually demonstrate their points. The ECI held a meeting on 4 October 2010, with recognised National and State Political Parties to discuss issues related to EVMs, along with other issues. All the six National political parties, and 35 out of 49 State political parties attended the meeting. They were familiarised with the technical and administrative safeguards put in place for EVMs by the ECI. The political parties appreciated the measures and recognised the fact that EVMs had been used effectively in elections in India for more than a decade. There was a consensus among political parties for their continued use. In view of the fact that periodic improvement in EVMs has been undertaken by the ECI, several political parties suggested that the feasibility of incorporating a Voter Verifiable Paper Trail in the EVMs might be explored to further enhance satisfaction among voters. Based on suggestions received at the meeting, the ECI referred the matter to the Technical Expert Committee for a detailed examination of the Voter Verifiable Paper Trail in EVMs, in all its aspects, through a process of wide consultation. The manufacturers of the EVMs have developed the Voter Verifiable Paper Trail system, but at present this system is compatible only with the post-2006 EVMs. VVPAT was used for the first time in the bye-election to the 51-Noksen (ST) Assembly Constituency of Nagaland, held in September At the time of the 2014 Lok Sabha Election, the ECI had taken all required steps in advance to ensure that the difficulties faced during the 2009 Lok Sabha Election would not occur this time. The 2014 Lok Sabha Election were held without any difficulty, using EVMs. VVPAT were also used in eight selected Parliamentary Constituencies in the country. 121

129 EXPENDITURE CONTROL The bedrock of democracy is a free and fair election process. This means not only ensuring a level playing field for all candidates and political parties, but also making certain that no undue advantage is gained by illegal methods of luring voters with cash, liquor, drugs or the use of muscle power. The ECI has to ensure that the elections are completely free of inducements. of the main functions of the ONE ECI is to ensure that the elections are completely democratic fair and inducement-free. In the 2014 General Elections, the ECI made it clear that it would watch every party s expenditure very closely. The expenditure limit for each candidate was set at 70 lakh rupees. Election expenditure is broadly divided into two categories. The first type is expenditure allowed under the law for electioneering, within the permissible limit. This includes expenditure connected with campaigning, such as on public meetings, rallies, posters, banners, vehicles, advertisements in print or on electronic media, and so on. The second type of expenditure is on items not permitted under law such as distribution of money, liquor, or any other item intended to influence electors which comes under the definition of bribery and is an offence under law. Yet another form of expenditure in recent times is on Paid News and surrogate advertisements. The purpose of election expenditure monitoring was twofold. For the first category of expenditure, it was to ensure 122

130 that all expenditure on permitted items was truthfully reported and considered while scrutinising the accounts submitted by the candidates. For the second category of expenditure including surrogate advertisements and Paid News, the monitoring mechanism was to catch it and include it in the account of election expenditure as well as take action under the law, including lodging complaints before the police/ magistrate. The ECI greatly appreciates the key role played by the media in the nurturing of democracy. Over the last six decades, the Indian media has been among the ECI s most powerful ally, its eyes and ears in the field and an eager supporter of the ECI s constitutional mandate. During election time, the media has played a significant role in the dissemination of election-related information, bringing to notice various violations, and generating political debate for the benefit of voters. However, certain complexities have developed in relation to the media s activities in the election area. The phenomenon of Paid News has assumed alarming proportion as a serious electoral malpractice, and has caused concern to the ECI in the context of the conduct of free and fair elections. Paid News circumvents election expenditure limits, disturbs the level playing field and acts against the voters right to correct information. Paid News has been defined by the Press Council of India as Any news or analysis appearing in any media (print and electronic) for a price in cash or kind as consideration. Political parties and media groups have been meeting the ECI and requesting for strong steps against Paid News. There was consensus among all political parties in their meeting with the ECI on 4 October 2010 and again on 9 March 2011 that stringent measures should be taken against Paid News. The ECI has issued various guidelines and orders for maximum vigilance against Paid News. Starting in June 2010, the ECI issued instructions to State and District officers to scrutinise, identify and report cases of Paid News through a carefully laid-out process. In 2010, the ECI appointed the Media Certification & Monitoring Committee (MCMC) at District and State levels for the certification of advertisements (an existing function), and also to monitor media for Paid News and other violations. The District Committee scrutinises all newspapers and electronic media in the District, in order to identify political advertisements in the garb of news coverage. It informs the RO for issue of notices to candidates either for 123

131 inclusion of actual expenditure on the published matter, or for inclusion of notional expenditure based on DIPR/ DAVP rates in their election expenses account irrespective of whether the candidate actually has paid or not paid the channel/newspaper. In case no reply is received by the District MCMC from the candidate within 48 hours of the notice, the decision of the MCMC is final. If the decision of the District MCMC is not acceptable to the candidate, he/she may appeal to the State-level MCMC within 48 hours of the receipt of the decision. The State-level MCMC examines all cases of Paid News on appeal against the decision of the District-level MCMC within 96 hours of the receipt of appeal and cases that they may take up suo motu, in which it directs the concerned RO to issue a notice to the candidate. The candidate may appeal against the decision of the State-level MCMC to the ECI within 48 hours of receipt of the order from the MCMC. The decision of the ECI is final. In relation to the print and the electronic media involved in Paid News, the ECI refers the decided cases to the Press Council of India and the News Broadcasters Association respectively for necessary action. The ECI has proposed amendment in the Representation of the People Act, 1951, to provide therein that publishing and abetting the publishing of Paid News for furthering the prospect of election of any candidate or for prejudicially affecting the prospect of election of any candidate be made an electoral offence, with punishment of a minimum of two years imprisonment. The issue is pending with the Government of India. The ECI from time to time organises workshops for media persons and political parties to sensitise them to refrain from indulging in this electoral malpractice. A multi-party democracy cannot function without money, but it is important to distinguish between money used for the right purposes and that used for illegal ones, and it is equally important to monitor the use of money in the critical period during the elections. Money power implies the use of money in the wrong way, which can result in an undemocratic situation this could be in the form of an unfair contest, or luring politicians, leading to bad governance. The ECI goes all out to control and limit the undermining influence of money power in elections. It has laid down detailed and dynamic mechanisms to scrutinise election expenditure. These rules were first implemented during the Legislative Assembly elections in Bihar in From 2010 to 2014, 124

132 this monitoring system was used in the Assembly/bye-elections in many States and Union Territories, and in the 2014 Lok Sabha Elections. These measures resulted in large cash seizures and interceptions. The core features of expenditure monitoring are: Each contesting candidate has to open a separate bank account for channelling all major election expenses through a cheque/dd drawn only on this bank account. A 24x7 toll-free complaintmonitoring cell was set up in each district to receive complaints from the public about money misuse. Surveillance took many forms as it was not easy to be everywhere at all times. There were flying squads, quick-response teams and static surveillance teams; these were headed by Executive Magistrates in each constituency in order to keep track of any illegal cash transactions, or any distribution of liquor or any items for bribing or inducement of the voters, and to attend to all complaints concerning election expenditure. Besides this, all airports in the States, major railway stations, hotels, farm houses, hawala agents, financial brokers, cash couriers, pawn brokers and other suspicious agencies and persons who were engaged in movement of cash were to be kept under close surveillance by the Income Tax Department and necessary actions were to be taken. There was constant monitoring of any suspicious cash withdrawals from any bank accounts during the course of the elections. Under the provisions of the MCC, Expenditure Observers (EO) were appointed for each District from the ranks of senior officers of the Income Tax Department, Customs and Central Excise Department, and other finance and accounts services from outside the State to oversee the election expenditure by candidates and parties during the course of the elections. These expenditure observers were helped by Assistant Expenditure Observers for each constituency. A Shadow Observation Register was maintained in each constituency for each candidate to record major expenses observed during the election process. 125

133 A Video Surveillance Team was set up, comprising camera persons and Government officials in each team to videograph major election campaign expenses. An accounting team was also constituted in each constituency to maintain the Shadow Observation Register and the folder of evidence in case it was needed. The Media Certification and Media Expenditure Monitoring Committee was constituted to monitor both print and electronic media including cable networks, social media and so on, for election advertisements and cases of suspected Paid News. A campaign was rolled out for ethical voting and awareness among voters not to accept any inducement in exchange for votes. The system for monitoring election expenditure has been formulated to prevent any candidate from influencing voters and to ensure fair elections. Strategies to ensure this are: All channels of communication are kept open and running through the State/Government of India units: the Income Tax Department to track illegal cash changing hands, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence and the Narcotics Control Bureau to track drugs, In a first, to ensure decorum in online election campaigning, the ECI monitored the content that political parties and candidates posted on the Internet and social media websites for any violation of electoral laws and the Model Code of Conduct. Taking into account the burgeoning significance of social media in the 2014 General Elections, the ECI laid down guidelines on the use of social media in election campaigning. This was the first time the ECI had issued such guidelines. Until now, the ECI had only been monitoring content that appeared in print and on electronic media. According to the new rules, all candidates had to declare in their affidavits information about their and social media accounts. Besides, all political advertisements on Internet-based websites or social media websites were required to obtain pre-certification from the ECI. The regulations of the MCC were equally applicable to all the content posted on the Internet. The ECI also declared to political parties that the expenditure incurred on their online campaigns would be seen as election expenditure and was to be filed as part of their statement to the ECI. The ECI also said that the aim was not to monitor the campaigns but to act on complaints that the ECI received. 126

134 the Enforcement Directorate to track foreign exchange, the Police Department and Excise Department of the respective States to check other crimes related to bribery, terror, theft, narcotics, illegal liquor and so on as well as the misuse of money involving the candidate, his/ her agent or any political party. A stringent watch is kept on the movement of cash through airports, airstrips and helipads, and a standard operating procedure has been formulated to deal with such a situation by the Bureau of Civil Aviation in consultation with the ECI. The Central Industrial Security Force was involved in keeping a rigorous watch at the airports of the poll-going States to stop the illegal movement of cash or bullion, if any connection with a candidate, his or her agent or any political party was suspected. The Ministry of Civil Aviation had been directed to operate Air Intelligence Units in all the airports of the poll-going states to keep track of and report any illegal movement of cash involving the candidate, his agent or any political party. The Financial Intelligence Unit of the Government of India had been asked to give current information on suspicious cash transactions in banks and to keep a close eye on withdrawals of cash exceeding the specified limits in the States going to polls. The Border Security Force and the Sashastra Seema Bal had been requested to keep a strict watch on the movement of illegal items, cash and so on, through the international borders of poll-going States. The cases of candidates who had not filed their election expenditure statements correctly were processed for disqualification. Rs. Rs. Election bandhus (friends) went from town to town and village to village, and explained the concept of fair elections, free of inducements 127

135 As part of its mandate to control the use of black money and illegal funds, the ECI had deployed officers from central revenue services such as the Income Tax and Customs and Excise departments, in the constituencies where polling was held. More than 303 crore rupees in cash was seized by the ECI during the 16th General Elections, with Andhra Pradesh topping the list in cash and liquor interception during this ellelction period. In different parts of the country, the vigilant surveillance and flying squads appointed by the ECI intercepted cash, liquor and narcotics as part of their duty to check black money use and illegal inducements to the electorate. In the list of cash seizures, Andhra Pradesh led the tally with crore rupees intercepted by the ECI, followed by Maharashtra with crore rupees, Karnataka with crore rupees, and Uttar Pradesh with crore rupees. The total cash seized in the country stood at a figure of crore rupees. Where liquor interceptions were concerned, ECI teams made big seizures, too. The maximum was to the tune of 9.28 lakh litres in Punjab, followed by 8.46 lakh litres in West Bengal. The total liquor seized in the country totalled approximately lakh litres. There were narcotics seizure as well, of course, and the teams intercepted a total of 4.8 lakh kg of drugs with the biggest haul of 1.9 lakh kg coming in Punjab. Drug seizures were as much as 7,641 kg in Uttar Pradesh and 7,745 kg in Rajasthan. The total number of FIRs lodged in connection with different kinds of poll-related violations stood at 75,306. The maximum number of FIRs were registered in Tamil Nadu with 13,641, followed by Uttar Pradesh where there were 13,565 of them. More than 20,000 flying squads and static 128

136 surveillance teams were deployed by the ECI. The ECI served 964 notices to political parties and candidates in cases of Paid News. Of these, 426 cases were confirmed as Paid News. Andhra Pradesh had 351 Paid News cases and Rajasthan 168. There were 112 Paid News cases in Punjab and 47 in Gujarat. The ECI had started streamlining the system of monitoring election expenses in , so they were more than ready by the time the 2014 General Elections began. The ECI had trained 3,000 officers in the last five years to monitor election expenditure. They had appointed one Expenditure Observer in each Lok Sabha constituency. Every election rally or meeting was visited by a flying squad, and provided with a videographer. The videographer recorded all activities during the election event. Then the videographer sent this recording to the videoviewing team, which made a shadow register of accounts. The shadow register was used to countercheck figures submitted by the candidates. 129

137 A FITTING CONCLUSION The 2014 General Elections were one more occasion for the ECI to fulfil its mandate as defined by the Indian Constitution. In what is the largest democratic electoral process in the world, it is a challenge to ensure fairness and freedom to voters in exercising their franchise. It was a challenge that the ECI met with impartiality, transparency and efficiency General Elections were THEmemorable, building up on lessons and directions gleaned from previous electoral experiences and featuring many firsts. These elections earned lasting headlines, and notched up a list of achievements as well as learning points that may well provide the framework for improvements in future elections. A key objective of these Elections was to make the electoral process as citizen-friendly and motivational as possible in order to ensure the maximum participation by voters. Through the innovative and energetic SVEEP efforts, which were implemented with vigour and depth, the 2014 Lok Sabha Elections brought into their fold segments of the public that had earlier been marginalised. Most of all, many from the burgeoning ranks of the youth were persuaded to register and participate in the elections. Subsequently, one of the most satisfactory aspects of the 2014 General Elections was the proactive participation of voters across the country. Whether they lived in urban centres, rural areas, or the remotest parts of the country, which are sometimes inaccessible, voters came forward to participate in the largest 130

138 numbers to date, in the 2014 General Elections. Another noteworthy feature of these elections was the general restraint shown by the political parties and their candidates, and the appropriate conduct of the election campaign by them. This is a critical feature of the elections and a very welcome change in our public life. E-registration, the use of the Braille script, differentlyabled-friendly mechanisms, photo identity cards, EVM familiarisation programmes, VVPAT, the NOTA option, door-to-door counselling, audio-visual campaigns, and facilitation desks at polling stations, were some of the many positive initiatives taken by the ECI for the 2014 General Elections. Several States built coalitions with civil society organisations and non-governmental bodies to increase the efficacy of the election management process. The media as always proved to be an important ally, especially in matters of enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct. The 2014 General Elections also highlighted the use of applications of technology in order to speed up, optimise and rationalise all aspects of the election process and to make them super-efficient and real-time. These elections clearly demonstrated all the qualities of the country as a mature democracy, which sets a solid example to the world community of nations. The former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, complimenting India for its efficient elections, had said, India is widely viewed as the gold standard for running elections. The 2014 General Elections provided a valuable set of experiences, the best of which will be scaled up in the coming years, in the ECI s continuous effort to set the highest standard in conducting elections in India. 131

139 Greater participation for a stronger democracy

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