Aadhaar-linked voter rolls among reforms being pursued by ECI
Elections in the states of Goa, Manipur, Uttarakhand, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh are due next year.
The Election Commission of India is pushing for at least five key electoral reforms including making paid news an electoral offence, linking Aadhaar numbers to the electoral roll , and increasing the punishment for filing a false affidavit (to two years of imprisonment), and has written to the government in this regard, officials familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity.
ECI has written to the law ministry urging it to “expeditiously” address electoral reforms that are pending with the government, which also includes multiple registration dates in a year for new voters, the official added. There are nearly 40 proposals pending with the ministry.
Elections in the states of Goa, Manipur, Uttarakhand, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh are due next year.
ECI has been considering a wide range of electoral reforms to usher in digitisation, removing duplication of voters and enabling remote voting for non-resident Indians (NRIs), even migrant workers within the country. “The commission on May 17, sent a reminder to the law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad to revisit the reforms,” the official cited in the first instance said.
Political leaders and experts argue that while some of the reforms mentioned are good, the focus should instead be on countering hate speech and bringing transparency to the electoral bond process. ECI, however, has highlighted these five reforms in its letter.
One, it has proposed that the voters who turn 18 should be able to register more than just once in year. At present, only those who turn 18 as of January 1 are eligible to register as voters. “This causes many people to lose out an entire year where they do not get to vote,” the official said. “The Commission has proposed four dates, January 1, April 1, September 1 and December 1 as prospective registration dates instead.”
A second EC official familiar with the matter said that the first time a recommendation on multiple dates of registration was made was in the 1970s (when the voting age was 21).
Two, ECI wants to get tough on false affidavits. At present, candidates who furnish false information can be punished with up to six months of imprisonment. The Commission has suggested increasing this to two years. “The present jail term does not result in the disqualification of the candidate,” the first official said. “An increased term can lead to the candidate being disqualified for six years.” A historic Supreme Court judgement in 2013 ruled that a lawmaker sentenced to prison for at least two years will lose membership of the house, be disqualified for the period of the sentence, and for six years after that period as well.
Three, ECI wants to make paid news an electoral offense.
Four, it has also suggested that advertisements in print media (newspapers, journals) be barred during the silent period, wherein candidates are not allowed to campaign.
Five, ECI wants to link Aadhaar data to the electoral roll , part of its plan to eliminate duplication of voter ID cards. “It will also ensure that when a person moves to a different state, their voter ID card does not have to be issued from scratch. It can just be transferred,” the first official said.
All the proposed reforms will require amendments to the Representation of People’s Act, 1951.
BJP MP Rakesh Sinha said that such reforms are essential to strengthen Indian democracy. “There is need to curb fake and bogus voters and the best way is to link voters with their Aadhaar card,” he said. “This will end the prevailing ailment. Anyone contesting election has moral and constitutional responsibilities to reveal required information but deliberate anomalies are blot on democracy. Such representatives cannot be truthful to their constitutional obligations . Therefore, the move of the EC is just .”
Congress MP Manish Tewari, however, argued that the Commission was paying “lip service” and should instead focus on regaining its credibility.. “The EC has absolutely lost the credibility and the confidence of the Indian people,” Tewari said. “It is seen as another arm of the government and before it starts pontificating about reforms, it must work to regain its credibility.”
Tewari added that ECI needs to be cognizant that the Madras High Court went to the extent of observing that its officials should be tried for murder because of the “cavalier nature” of formulating the election schedule even as the second wave of the pandemic hit. “It has no credibility for the simple reason that any autonomous institution needs to speak truth to power and only then can they inspire confidence. These reforms are nothing but lip service to try and regain its demolished credibility.”
RJD MP Manoj Jha said that the Commission was going for low hanging fruit. “The most important electoral reform needed as of now is total transparency in electoral bonds,” he said. “That should be a priority area for the EC.”
He added that the Commission has also not done anything substantial to counter hate speech and polarizing speeches.
But former CEC SY Queraishi said that these are long pending reforms. “These have been around for a long time,” he said. “I would be happy if a sixth is added that appointment of election commissioners is by a collegium and elevation to CEC is by seniority so that the two (other election) commissioners do not feel that they are on probation.”
According to a former chief election commissioner who did not wish to be named, every CEC tries to push through the reforms, but without much success. “What is more important that the Commission remain autonomous,” the former CEC said.
“These reforms are neither major nor significant. Linking of voter id numbers with Aadhaar is particularly dangerous and was even quashed by the Supreme Court. Increasing the punishment is okay but one needs to see how many convictions for false affidavits have been made so far. Paid news will be impossible to define and even harder to prove. What is needed is laws that are implementable,” Jagdeep Chhokar of Association for Democratic Reforms, said.
