The Representation of the People (Amendment) Act, 2010 (36 of 2010) which seeks to amend the Representation of the People Act, 1950 (43 of 1950) was enacted and published in the Gazette of India on the 22nd September, 2010. The amending Act confer voting rights to citizens of India who are absenting from their place or ordinary residence in India owing to their employment, education or otherwise outside India (whether temporarily or not). Vide the amending Act, they shall be entitled to have their names registered in the electoral roll in the Assembly/Parliamentary constituency in which their place of residence in India as mentioned in their passport is located.
The Central Government, in consultation with the Election Commission prepared and published the Registration of Electors (Amendment) Rules, 2011 on 3rd February, 2011 {S.O 244 (E)} dt. 03.02.2011} {S.O. 306 (E) dt 09.02.2011}. The Central Government has issued necessary notification bringing the Act into force on the 10th day of February, 2011. Accordingly, the rules have also come into force on the 10th day of February, 2011. The overseas Indians can now furnish the documents self attested by them.
Living abroad will not stop you anymore to have your say back home in the political and democratic processes, including the general elections.
Indian elections are typically characterised by heat and dust, rebel violence, campaign trails and most importantly the dramatic shifts in political and social orientation of voters, which are visible only in India.
The recent amendments in the Representation of People Act enable people, who are living/working abroad and have not obtained citizenship of any foreign country to use their voting rights in the country. For this, they would have to enrol themselves in the electoral rolls, from where they have been issued passports.
These people are termed as `overseas electors' and will be using their voting rights for the first time in the upcoming assembly polls, to be held in Tamil Nadu, Assam, Kerala and West Bengal and the union territory of Pondicherry in 2011.
According to the Election Commission of India, for getting registered in the electoral rolls, overseas electors will be required to submit claim applications through form 6A in person directly to the election returning officer (ERO) of the constituency concerned or sent by post to the ERO along with self-attested copy of the requisite documents as mentioned in the form 6A. This will confer them the voting rights.
In countries like Great Britain, Australia, Singapore there is a provision for overseas electors to exercise their voting rights.
"The Election Commission has also decided to confer on overseas electors the right to contest an election. The move is already underway with the EC busy formulating the modalities for this," says KF Wilfred, secretary, EC in his latest communication issued on March 23.
Since the process may take some time, the new system will be in place by 2012, when politically crucial state like UP goes to poll along with Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab.
Within the political circle here, it is being hailed as a welcome step. Om Prakash Singh, a senior BJP leader says, "This is expected to add a new colour and dimension to the politics and also bring in foreign money in the elections. On the other hand, the process may also help change the political behaviour patterns and perceptions of rulers and ruled and may also illuminate the muddy path of India's democratic evolution in future."
The matrix for this new idea comes from the new section 20A incorporated in the Representation of People's Act, 2010. This provides that every citizen of India, who has not acquired citizenship of any other country and who is absenting from his place of ordinary residence in India owing to employment, education or otherwise outside India (whether temporarily or not), shall be entitled to have his/her name registered in the electoral roll of the constituency, at his/her place of residence in India as mentioned in his/her passport.
The EC has also decided to confer on overseas electors the right to contest elections, subject to the fulfilment of certain requirements specified under the law. One of the essential qualifications prescribed under the law (Articles 84 and 173 of the Constitution.Section 4(a) of the government of Union Territory (UT) Act, 1963, or section 4(a) of the government of National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi Act, 1991, as the case may be), is that the candidate should make and subscribe an oath or affirmation in the prescribed form, before ERO or additional election returning officer (ARO), authorised by the commission for this purpose.
In case, a candidate who is outside India, the oath can be made before the diplomatic or consular representative of India in the country, where the candidate happens to be. Similarly, an overseas elector may approach the authorised person in the Indian Mission of the country concerned for making the oath or affirmation.
If an overseas elector, who may file nomination papers is in India at the time of filing nomination, he may make the oath or affirmation before the ERO/ARO. If a candidate, who is an overseas elector appears before the RO/ARO to make the oath, the RO/ARO concerned shall ensure that the identity of the person is properly verified by carefully going through the particulars in the passport of the person. Thus such person will necessarily have to produce his/her original passport for verification by the ERO/ARO at the time of making the oath or affirmation.
"At the time of voting also, the identity of the overseas electors has to be verified by checking the particulars in their passports," the EC says.
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Compiled from-
lawyers club India and times of India.
http://eci.nic.in/eci_main/nri/rpa.pdf
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