UNIT – V

ELECTION
COMMISSION IN INDIA

 The Election Commission is a permanent and an

independent body established by the Constitution of
India directly to ensure free and fair elections in the
country.
 The body administers elections to the Lok Sabha and
Rajya Sabha and state Legislative Assemblies and
Legislative Council in India, and the offices of the
President and Vice President in the country.
 The Election Commission operates under the authority
of Constitution per Article 324, and subsequently
enacted Representation of the People Act.
 The commission has the powers under the
Constitution, to act in an appropriate manner when the
enacted laws make insufficient provisions to deal with
a given situation in the conduct of an election.
 The Election Commission is an all-India body in the
sense that it is common to both the Central government
and the state governments.
 It must be noted here that the election commission is
not concerned with the elections to panchayats and
muncipalities in the states. For this, the Constitution of

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 India provides for a separate State Election
Commission1.
Composition
Article 324 of the Constitution has made the following
provisions with regard to the composition of election
commission:
1. 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.
2. The appointment of the chief election commissioner and
other election commissioners shall 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. The president may also appoint after consultation with
the election commission such regional commissioners as he
may consider necessary to assist the election commission.
5. The conditions of service and tenure of office of the
election commissioners and the regional commissioners
shall be determined by the president.
Being a constitutional authority, Election Commission is
amongst the few institutions which function with both
autonomy and freedom, along with the country’s higher
judiciary, the Union Public Service Commission and the
Comptroller and Auditor General of India.

Structure
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Originally in 1950, the commission had only a Chief
Election Commissioner. Two additional Commissioners
were appointed to the commission for the first time on
16 October 1989 but they had a very short tenure,
ending on 1 January 1990.
The Election Commissioner Amendment Act, 1989
made the commission a multi-member body.
The concept of a 3-member Commission has been in
operation since then, with the decisions being made by
a majority vote.[2] The Chief Election Commissioner
and the two Election Commissioners who are usually
retired IAS officers draw salaries and allowances as per
with those of the Judges of the Supreme Court of India
as per the Chief Election Commissioner and other
Election Commissioners (Conditions of Service) Rules,
1992.

The commission is served by its secretariat located in

New Delhi.[2] The Election Commissioners are assisted
by Deputy Election Commissioners, who are generally
IAS officers. They are further assisted by Directors
General, Principal Secretaries, and Secretaries and
Under Secretaries.[2][7]

At the state level, Election Commission is assisted by

the Chief Electoral Officer of the State, who is an IAS
officer of Principal Secretary rank. At the district and
constituency levels, the District Magistrates (in their
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capacity as District Election Officers), Electoral
Registration Officers and Returning Officers perform
election work.

Removal from office

The Chief Election Commissioner of India can be

removed from his office similar to the removal of a
judge of the Supreme Court of India which requires
a resolution passed by the [[Parliament of India a
two-thirds majority in both the Lok Sabha and the
Rajya Sabha on the grounds of proved misbehavior
or incapacity. Other Election Commissioners can be
removed by the President of India on the
recommendation of the Chief Election
Commissioner. A Chief Election Commissioner has
never been impeached in India. In 2009, just before the
2009 Lok Sabha Elections, Chief Election
Commissioner N. Gopalaswami sent a recommendation
to President Prathibha Patil to remove Election
Commissioner Navin Chawla, who was soon to take
office as the chief election commissioner and to
subsequently supervise the Lok Sabha Election, citing
his partisan behavior in favor of one political party. [8]
The President opined that such a recommendation is not
binding on the president, and hence rejected it.[9]
Subsequently, after Gopalswami's retirement the next
month, Chawla became the chief election commissioner
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 and supervised the 2009 Lok Sabha Elections.

Powers and functions

The powers and functions of the Election Commission with
regard to elections to the Parliament, state legislatures and
offices of President and Vice-President can be classified
into three categories.
1. Administrative
2. Advisory
3. Quasi-Judicial
In details, these powers and functions are:
1. To determine the territorial areas of the electoral
constituencies throughout the country on the basis of the
Delimitation Commission Act of Parliament.4
2. To prepare and periodically revise electoral rolls and to
register all eligible voters.
3. To notify the dates and schedules of elections and to
scrutinise nomination papers.
4. To grant recognition to political parties and allot election
symbols to them.
5. To act as a court for settling disputes related to granting
of recognition to political parties and allotment of election
symbols to them.
6. To appoint officers for inquiring into disputes relating to
electoral arrangements.
7. To determine the code of conduct to be observed by the
parties and the candidates at the time of elections.
8. To prepare a roster for publicity of the policies of the
political parties on radio and TV in times of elections.
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9. To advise the president on matters relating to the
disqualifications of the members of Parliament.
10. To advise the governor on matters relating to the
disqualifications of the members of state legislature.
11. To cancel polls in the event of rigging, booth capturing,
violence and other irregularities.
12. To request the president or the governor for
requisitioning the staff necessary for conducting elections.
13. To supervise the machinery of elections throughout the
country to ensure free and fair elections.
14. To advise the president whether elections can be held in
a state under president’s rule in order to extend the period
of emergency after one year.
15. To register political parties for the purpose of elections
and grant them the status of national or state parties on the
basis of their poll performance5.
The Election Commission is assisted by deputy election
commissioners. They are drawn from the civil service and
appointed by the commission with tenure system. They are
assisted, in turn, by thes ecretaries, joint secretaries, deputy
secretaries and under secretaries posted in the secretariat of
the commission.

Modernisation

The Election Commission had tried to bring

improvements in election procedures by the
introduction of Electronic voting machines or EVMs. It
was thought that these would reduce malpractices and
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 improve efficiency. It was first tried out on an
experimental basis in the state of Kerala for the 1982
Legislative Assembly Elections. After a successful
testing and the legal inquiries, the commission took the
decision to begin the use of these voting machines. The
Election Commission launched a web site of its own on
28 February 1998 in order to provide accurate
information, management, administration and instant
results of the elections. In an effort to prevent electoral
fraud, in 1993, EPICs or Electors Photo Identity Cards
were issued, which became mandatory by the 2004
elections. However ration cards have been allowed for
election purposes in certain situations. In 1998, the
commission decided on a programme for the
'computerisation' of the electoral rolls. The introduction
of Voter-verified paper audit trail (VVPAT) in eight
Lok Sabha constituencies in 2014 Indian General
Elections was a big
achievement for the Election Commission. This
Voter-verified paper audit trail (VVPAT) system was
first used with EVMs in a by-poll in September 2013 in
Noksen (Assembly Constituency) in Nagaland. and
eventually in all elections from September 2013 onwards in
various Legislative elections in the country.

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NOTA symbol in India

In 2014, None of the above or NOTA was also added as

an option on the voting machines which is now a
mandatory option to be provided in any election.[30][31]
The specific symbol for NOTA, a ballot paper with a
black cross across it, was introduced on 18 September
2015. The symbol has been designed by National
Institute of Design, Ahmedabad.[32][33] With the Bihar
Legislative Assembly election, 2015, the state became
the first to have photo electoral rolls, with photographs
of the candidates on the EVMs.[34][35]

Electors with disabilities

The Election Commission of India came under severe

criticism when an RTI application filed by activist Dr
Satendra Singh revealed the commission's ill-
preparedness to safeguard electors with disabilities in
the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.[36] There were many
violations of the Supreme Court order from 2014 to
enfranchise persons with disabilities.[37]
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 2017 Hackathon

Election Commission organised an open hackathon on 3

June at 10 am, to attempt hacking of Electronic Voting
Machine used by the commission in various Indian
elections.[38][39] The NCP and CPI(M) were the only two
parties that registered for the event but none of them
participated.[40] Functioning of EVMs and VVPAT
machines were demonstrated to the teams.

ROLE OF CHIEF ELECTION COMMISSIONER

 The Chief Election Commissioner heads the
Election Commission of India, a body
constitutionally empowered to conduct free and fair
elections to the national and state legislatures and
of President and Vice-President.
 Chief Election Commissioner of India is usually a
member of the Indian Civil Service and mostly
from the Indian Administrative Service.
 It is very difficult to remove the authority of the
Chief Election Commissioner once appointed by
the president, as two-thirds of the Lok Sabha and
the Rajya Sabha need to vote against him for
disorderly conduct or improper actions.
Functions of Chief Election Commissioner
 The CEC performs the functions of the Election
Commission of India with the help of other Election
Commissioners.
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 The Chief Election Commissioner takes decisions
based on the majority decision of all the Election
Commissioners.
 Some of the functions of the ECI are as follows:
o Guardian of Indian Elections: The Election

Commission is regarded as the country's guardian

of elections. It publishes a Model Code of Conduct
for political parties and candidates to follow in
order to hold free and fair elections.
o Issues Model Code of Conduct: The commission

first issued the code in 1971 for the 5th Lok Sabha
elections, and it has since been updated several
times.
o Political Party Registration: In 1989, legislation

governing the registration of political parties was

enacted, and a number of parties were registered
with the commission.
o Issuing Symbols to Political Parties: The

electoral commission has the authority to

authorize political parties to use symbols. It's
worth noting that the Election Commission can't
give the same symbol to two regional political
parties even if they're from different states.
o Recognition of Political Parties: It recognized

national parties, state parties, and regional parties.

o Setting spending limitations: It imposed

spending limits for polls.

o Electoral Rolls Preparation and Updation: The

commission prepares electoral rolls and updates

the voter's list on a regular basis.
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 o Notification of Election Dates: The commission
sends out notices of election dates and schedules
for filing nominations.

Despite the recent changes in the hierarchy, the system

always had powers to impose unambiguous rules and
guidelines that applied across the entire nation e.g. as to
how the ballots will be cast and counted, what will be
regarded as 'unqualified' vote. India was probably one
of the first countries in the world to go for a completely
electronic ballot in the parliamentary elections in 2014.
[3]
What made this remarkable was that the Election
Commission of India had successfully implemented this
across the entire diverse Indian population that also
consisted of the rural illiterate people.

While the office has always been an important one in

the machinery of the Indian political process, it gained
significant public attention during the tenure of T.N.
Seshan, from 1990 to 1996. Seshan is widely credited
with undertaking a zealous effort to end corruption and
manipulation in Indian elections.[4][5][6] Though he made
significant progress, several politicians attempted to
derail these efforts. In particular, the expansion of the
Election Commission to include the two Election
Commissioners (in addition to the Chief Commissioner)
was seen as a move to curtail the commissioner's ability
to act aggressively.

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Summary:

STATE ELECTION COMMISSION

The superintendence direction and control of the

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preparation of the electoral rolls for, and the conduct of,
all elections to the Panchayats shall be vested in a State
Election Commission consisting of a State Election
Commissioner to be appointed by the Governor
Thus, the Election Commission currently consists of a
Chief Election Commissioner and two Election
Commissioners. The decisions of the commission are
taken by a majority vote. Sunil Arora is the current
Chief Election Commissioner and the two Election
Commissioners are Ashok Lavasa and Sushil Chandra.

Constitution of State Election Commission.

1. State Election Commission is provided by the

Constitution of India to deal with the elections to the
Municipalities and Panchayats in the states.
2. Article 243K(1) states that the superintendence,
direction and control of the preparation of electoral
rolls for, and the conduct of, all elections to the
Panchayats (Municipalities under Article 243ZA
3. Article 243K(1): It states that the superintendence,
direction and control of the preparation of electoral
rolls for, and the conduct of, all elections to the
Panchayats (Municipalities under Article 243ZA)
shall be vested in a State Election Commission

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 consisting of a State Election Commissioner to be
appointed by the Governor.
4. Article 243K(2): It states that the tenure and
appointment will be directed as per the law made by
the state legislature. However, State Election
Commissioner shall not be removed from his/her
office except in like manner and on the like grounds
as a Judge of a High Court.

5. The State Election Commissioner to be appointed by

the Governor.
the State Election Commissioner shall not be
removed from his office except in like manner
and on the like grounds as a judge of a High
Court and the conditions of service of the
State Election commissioner shall not be
varied to his disadvantage after his
appointment.

The State Election Commissioners work independently of

the Election Commission of India and each has its own
sphere of operation. The functions of the State Election
Commission are as follows:
 The State government is required to appoint a State
Election Commissioner who would be responsible for
conducting elections to the Panchayati Raj institutions.
 Preparation of Electoral Rolls
 Appointment of Dates for Nominations

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 Public Notice of Election
 Nomination of Candidates for Election
 Publication of List of Contesting Candidates
 Fixing Time for Poll
 Adjournment of Poll in Emergencies
 Counting of Votes

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Summary:

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17
BODIES FOR THE WELFARE OF SC, ST and OBC
Women

The National Commission for Scheduled Castes (SCs) is

a constitutional body in the sense that it is directly
established by Article 338 of the Constitution.

Evolution of the Commission

 Originally, Article 338 of the Constitution provided
for the appointment of a Special Officer for
Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs)
to investigate all matters relating to the
constitutional safeguards for the SCs and STs and
to report to the President on their working.
 He was designated as the Commissioner for SCs and
STs and assigned the said duty.
 In 1978, the Government (through a Resolution) set up
a non-statutory multi-member Commission for SCs
and S
 Ts; the Office of Commissioner for SCs and STs also
continued to exist.
 the 89th Constitutional Amendment Act of 2003
bifurcated the combined National Commission for
SCs and STs into two separate bodies, namely,
National Commission for Scheduled Castes (under
Article 338) and National Commission for
Scheduled Tribes (under Article 338-A).
 The separate National Commission for SCs came
into existence in 2004. It consists of a chairperson, a
vice-chairperson and three other members. They
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 are appointed by the President by warrant under
his hand and seal.
 Their conditions of service and tenure of office are
also determined by the President.

The functions of the Commission are:

(a) To investigate and monitor all matters relating to the
constitutional and other legal safeguards for the SCs and to
evaluate their working;
(b) To inquire into specific complaints with respect to the
deprivation of rights and safeguards of the SCs;
(c) To participate and advise on the planning process of
socio-economic development of the SCs and to evaluate the
progress of their development under the Union or a state;

(d) To present to the President, annually and at such other

times as it may deem fit, reports upon the working of those
safeguards;
(e) To make recommendations as to the measures that
should be taken by the Union or a state for the effective
implementation of those safeguards and other measures for
the protection, welfare and socio-economic development of
the SCs; and
(f) To discharge such other functions in relation to the
protection, welfare and development and advancement of
the SCs as the president may specify.
Report of the Commission
The commission presents an annual report to the president.
It can also submit a report as and when it thinks necessary.
Powers of the Commission
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The Commission is vested with the power to regulate its
own procedure.
The Commission, while investigating any matter or
inquiring into any complaint, has all the powers of a civil
court trying a suit and in particular in respect of the
following matters:
(a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person
from any part of India and examining him on oath;
(b) requiring the discovery and production of any
document;
(c) receiving evidence on affidavits;
(d) requisitioning any public record from any court or
office;
(e) issuing summons for the examination of witnesses and
documents; and
(f) any other matter which the President may determine.
The Central government and the state governments are
required to consult the Commission on all major policy
matters affecting the SCs.
Separate Commission for STs:
The separate National Commission for STs came into
existence in 2004.
It consists of a chairperson, a vice-chairperson and
three other members.
They are appointed by the President by warrant under his
hand and seal. Their conditions of service and tenure of
office are also determined by the President.
The functions of the Commission are:

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(a) To investigate and monitor all matters relating to the
constitutional and other legal safeguards for the STs and to
evaluate their working;
(b) To inquire into specific complaints with respect to the
deprivation of rights and safeguards of the STs;
(c) To participate and advise on the planning process of
socio-economic development of the STs and to evaluate the
progress of their development under the Union or a state;
(d) To present to the President, annually and at such other
times as it may deem fit, reports upon the working of those
safeguards;
(e) To make recommendations as to the measures that
should be taken by the Union or a state for the effective
implementation of those safeguards and other measures for
the protection, welfare and socio-economic development of
the STs; and
(f) To discharge such other functions in relation to the
protection, welfare and development and advancement of
the STs as the President may specify.
Report of the Commission
The Commission presents an annual report to the President.
It can also submit a report as and when it thinks necessary.
Powers of the Commission
The Commission is vested with the power to regulate its
own procedure.
The Commission, while investigating any matter or
inquiring into any complaint, has all the powers of a civil
court trying a suit and in particular in respect of the
following matters:

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(a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person
from any part of India and examining him on oath;
(b) requiring the discovery and production of any
document;
(c) receiving evidence on affidavits;
(d) requisitioning any public record from any court or
office;
(e) issuing summons for the examination of witnesses and
documents; and
(f) any other matter which the President may determine.
National Commission for Backward Classes
 102nd Constitution Amendment Act, 2018 provides
constitutional status to the National Commission for
Backward Classes (NCBC).
 It has the authority to examine complaints and welfare
measures regarding socially and educationally backward
classes.
 Previously NCBC was a statutory body under the
Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
Structure of NCBC
 The Commission consists of five members including a
Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and three other
Members appointed by the President by warrant under
his hand and seal.
 The conditions of service and tenure of office of the
Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and other Members is
determined by President.
 Functions:
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 to investigate and monitor all matters relating to the
safeguards provided for the socially and educationally
backward classes under this Constitution or under any
other law for the time being in force or under any order
of the Government and to evaluate the working of such
safeguards;
 to inquire into specific complaints with respect to the
deprivation of rights and safeguards of the socially and
educationally backward classes;
 to participate and advise on the socio-economic
development of the socially and educationally
backward classes and to evaluate the progress of their
development under the Union and any State;
 to present to the President, annually and at such other
times as the Commission may deem fit, reports upon
the working of those safeguards;
 to make in such reports the recommendations as to the
measures that should be taken by the Union or any
State for the effective implementation of those
safeguards and other measures for the protection,
welfare and socio-economic development of the
socially and educationally backward classes; and
 to discharge such other functions in relation to the
protection, welfare and development and advancement
of the socially and educationally backward classes as
the President may, subject to the provisions of any law
made by
 Parliament, by rule specify.

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 The National Commission for Women (NCW) is the
statutory (established by an act of a parliament )body of
the Government of India, generally concerned with
advising the government on all policy matters affecting
women. It was established on 31 January 1992 under the
provisions of the Indian Constitution,[1] as defined in the
1990 National Commission for Women Act.[2] The first
head of the commission was Jayanti Patnaik. As of 30
November 2018, Rekha Sharma is the chairperson.[3]
The commission shall perform all or any of the following
functions, namely :-
a. Investigate and examine all matters relating to the
safeguards provided for women under the Constitution and
other laws;
b. present to the Central Government, annually and at such
other times as the Commission may deem fit, reports upon
the working of those safeguard;
c. make in such reports recommendations for the effective
implementation of those safeguards for the improving the
conditions of women by the Union or any state;
d. review, from time to time, the exiting provisions of the
Constitution and other laws affecting women and
recommend amendments thereto so as to suggest remedial
legislative measures to meet any lacunae, inadequacies or
shortcomings in such legislations;
e. take up cases of violation of the provisions of the
Constitution and of other laws relating to women with the
appropriate authorities;
f. look into complaints and take suo moto notice of matters
relating to:-
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 deprivation of women's rights;
 non-implementation of laws enacted to provide protection

to women and also to achieve the objective of equality and

development;
 non-compliance of policy decisions, guidelines or

instructions aimed at mitigating hardships and ensuring

welfare and providing relief to women, and take up the
issues arising out of such matters with appropriate
authorities;
g. call for special studies or investigations into specific
problems or situations arising out of discrimination and
atrocities against women and identify the constraints so as
to recommend strategies for their removal;
h. undertake promotional and educational research so as to
suggest ways of ensuring due representation of women in
all spheres and identify factors responsible for impeding
their advancement, such as, lack of access to housing and
basic services, inadequate support services and
technologies for reducing drudgery and occupational health
hazards and for increasing their productivity;
i. participate and advice on the planning process of socio-
economic development of women;
j. evaluate the progress of the development of women under
the Union and any State;
k. inspect or cause to inspected a jail,remand home,women's
institution or other place of custody where women are kept
as prisoners or otherwise and take up with the concerned
authorities for remedial action, if found necessary;

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l. fund litigation involving issues affecting a large body of
women;
m. make periodical reports to the Government on any
matter pertaining to women and in particular various
difficulties under which women toil;
n. any other matter which may be referred to it by Central
Government.

 Write Functions of Election commission of India.

 State the appointment of commissions for the welfare of

backward classes?

 Discuss the role of Chief Election Commissioner in

conducting the elections.
 Explain the role and functioning of the State Election
commission.

 Outline the Constitutional provisions of national

commission for scheduled castes?

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