e-postal ballot for overseas Indian voters
- March 17, 2023
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
No Comments
e-postal ballot for overseas Indian voters
Subject : Polity
Section: Election
Context:
- The Law Minister informed the Rajya Sabha that an Election Commission proposal to facilitate Electronically-Transmitted Postal Ballot System (ETPBS) for overseas Indian voters is under discussions with the Ministry of External Affairs.
What is the current process of voting by NRIs/overseas Indian voters:
- Currently, Election Commission of India (ECI) allows NRIs to register as overseas electors as long as they have not acquired the citizenship of another country.
- An NRI can vote in the constituency in which his/her place of residence, as mentioned in the passport, is located.
- He/she can only vote in person and will have to produce her passport in original at the polling station for establishing identity.
- Voting rights for NRIs were introduced only in 2011, through an amendment to the Representation of the People Act 1950.
What has been proposed by the EC:
- To extend voting facility for NRI electors, EC had proposed the extension of Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System (ETPBS) facility to these voters.
- ETPBS enables the voters to cast their vote on an electronically received postal ballot from their preferred location.
- ETPBS facility is so far available to:
- Members of the armed forces and central armed police forces posted outside their home constituencies
- Members of Indian embassies and diplomatic missions.
- Voters on election duty
- Voter above 80 years of age or person with disabilities (PwD)
- Voter who are under preventive detention
- Media persons (Journalist)
- According to the EC proposal, any NRI interested in voting through the postal ballot in an election will have to inform the Returning Officer (RO).
- RO should be informed in a time period not later than five days after the notification of the election.
- On receiving such information, the RO will dispatch the ballot paper electronically.
- The NRI voters will download the ballot paper, mark their preference on the printout and send it back.
- This ballot is to be sent back along with a declaration attested by an officer appointed by the consular representative of India in the country where the NRI is resident.