Undertrial Prisoner Can Contest Election But Can not vote.
Section 8 Representation of the People Act, 1951 –
Disqualification on conviction for certain offences-
▪ the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 or
▪ the Prevention of Terrorism Act, 2002 shall be disqualified, where the convicted person is sentenced
• Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955
▪ A person convicted of any offence and sentenced to imprisonment for two years or more.
Section. 62 – Right to Vote:-
( 1 ) only those people who are for the time being entered in the electoral roll of any constituency shall be entitled to vote in that constituency .
( 2 ) A person Disqualified under Section 16 of the RP Act, 1950.
( 3 ) No person shall vote at a general election in more than one consistency of the same class, if she does so, her votes shall at all such places.
( 4 ) No person shall at any election vote in the same constituency more than once, if he does so vote, all his votes in that constituency shall be void
( 5 ) No person shall vote at any election if he is confined in a prison, whether under a sentence of imprisonment or transportation or otherwise, or is in the lawful custody of the police: Provided that nothing in this sub-section shall apply to a person subjected to preventive detention under any law for the time being in force
Provided further that by reason of the prohibition to vote under this subsection, a person whose name has been entered in the electoral roll shall not cease to be an elector.
a person in custody not allowed to vote: Bombay High Court – (Undertrial Prisoner Can Contest election but can not vote)
• ” If a full play is given to the provisions contained in section 2 ( d ) and Section 62 ( 5 ) of the RP Act 1951, an inference becomes inescapable that a person in custody, either post-conviction or during the course of investigation or trial, is prohibited from casting vote in any election “.
Bombay HC Held that (Undertrial Prisoner Can Contest Election But Can’t Vote )
•The Supreme Court in Anukul Chandra Pradhan V / S. Union of India and S. Radhakrishnan V / s. Union of India has upheld the constitutional validity of Section 62 and
•categorically held that the classification between the persons who are in custody and those who are not in custody, is a reasonable classification based on an intelligible differentia .
Allowing a person in prison to vote, wouldn’t strengthen democracy .
• It would suffice to note that the concept of ‘ democracy ‘ transcends ‘ electoral democracy ‘. The purity of the electoral process and the probity of the participants therein are also of equal significance in strengthening the democratic principles ….. I am, therefore, not inclined to accede to the broad proposition that permitting the persons ( who are otherwise not qualified to vote in the election ) strengthens the democracy, “.
Other takeaways from this Judgement
● A right to vote is not merely a statutory right but has been elevated to the level of a constitutional right, though certainly not a fundamental right.
Articles 324 to o 329 of Part XV of the Indian Constitution
• 324. Superintendence, direction and control of elections to be vested in an Election Commission.
• 326. Elections to the House of the People and to the Legislative Assemblies of States to be on the basis of adult suffrage .
• 327. Power of Parliament to make provision with respect to elections to Legislatures .
RPA in 1950
•This Act makes provisions for :
• Allocation of seats in the House of the People and the Legislative Assemblies through direct elections.
• The voters ‘ qualifications for the elections. • The Delimitation of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies.
RPA 1950
• Electoral rolls for parliamentary constituencies and for Assembly Constituencies – roll .
•Disqualifications for registration in an electoral roll
• No person to be registered in more than one constituency.
• No person to be registered more than once in any constituency .
Representation of the People Act, 1951.
● Qualifications and Disqualifications for Membership of Parliament state legislature.
● Disqualifications for voting
● NOTIFICATION OF GENERAL ELECTIONS
● ADMINISTRATIVE MACHINERY FOR THE CONDUCT OF ELECTIONS
● REGISTRATION OF POLITICAL PARTIES.
• Nomination of Candidates
• General Procedure at Elections
• Counting of Votes
• Election Expenses.