SC likely to hear plea on EC’s move to relax postal ballot norms

Sub: Polity

Sec: Elections

Context:

The YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) urgently approached the Supreme Court to contest the Election Commission’s (EC) validation of approximately five lakh postal ballots cast in Andhra Pradesh.

Details:

The YSRCP’s petition challenges the State High Court’s dismissal of their plea against the relaxation of postal ballot norms by the EC.
The High Court had dismissed the plea and asked to file an election petition. The petition noted that postal ballots account for 1.5% of the total votes.

Election Commission’s relaxation in the rules:

It underscored the prescribed procedures for casting, verifying, and counting postal ballots as per the Conduct of Election Rules 1961 and specific instructions issued by the EC on July 19 of the previous year.
The rules require that Form 13A, containing the voter’s declaration, must be signed and attested by an authorized officer, with any unsigned or unattested forms being rejected.
The YSRCP contended that an EC circular issued on May 30, 2024, relaxed these norms, allowing ballots to be accepted with just the attesting officer’s signature.
The party argued that this circular, which applied only to Andhra Pradesh and was issued 17 days after the elections, was suspicious and potentially motivated by ulterior motives.

What is Postal Ballot (or Postal voting)?

Postal Ballot, also known as absentee voting, is a method of voting in which electors cast their ballots by mail rather than in person at a polling station.
This method is particularly useful for individuals who are unable to vote in person due to various reasons.
E.g., being away from their home constituency, having a disability, or being engaged in essential services on election day.

Eligibility:

Service voters:
- Members of the armed forces, paramilitary forces, and other government employees deployed on election duty far from their home constituencies.
Absentee voters:
- Individuals who are unable to vote in person due to reasons such as being away from their home constituency for work, illness, or disability.
Electors on election duty:
- Government officials and polling staff who are assigned duties at polling stations other than their own.
Electors under preventive detention:
- Individuals who are detained under preventive custody orders during the election period.
Senior citizens (citizens above 85 years of age) and Persons with Disability (PwD).
- The government, in consultation with the Election Commission, amended the Conduct of Election Rules (1961) to raise the minimum age for senior citizens, eligible for voting by postal ballot, to 85 years from 80 years.

Significance:

Postal ballots play a crucial role in ensuring that eligible voters exercise their franchise, even when they are unable to vote in person.
They expand the accessibility of the electoral process and contribute to a more inclusive and representative democracy.

Issues associated with postal ballot:

Vote buying
- There is a chance that someone else is casting the vote on behalf of the voter because the voter chooses to sell his or her vote.
Freedom of voting & secrecy might be affected
- As the voter will have to vote on a printed ballot from their respective home, someone might observe the voter casting her/his vote.
- This might lead to coercion or forcing the voter to make a particular choice.
Reliability and delay of postal services
- While the reliability and delay of postal services in one’s own country are well known to the election commission, conditions might be worse in other countries.
- Consequently, the postal voting process must start early enough to take into account any unforeseeable conditions.

Source: TH