Electoral Statistics Pocket Book 2017

Election Commission of India is a Constitutional Body created under Article 324 of the Constitution of India. It was set up on 25th January 1950. The Constitution provided for the Election Commission to be either a single member or a multi-member body, depending upon the requirements from time to time. The first Chief Election Commissioner was appointed on 21st March 1950. Since its creation, the Commission was single member body except for brief period from 16th October 1989 to 1st January 1990 when it was converted into a three member body. Subsequently, since 1st October 1993, the Commission has been a three-member body, consisting of the Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners. Election Commission of India conducts elections to the offices of President & Vice President of India, both Houses of Parliament {Lok Sabha & Rajya Sabha}, State Legislative Assemblies and State Legislative Councils.

The election machinery is headed by Chief Electoral Officer at the State/UT level, and by District Election Officer at the District level. Electoral Registration Officers and Returning Officers discharge their duties provided in the law at the constituency level. During elections, a large number of central and state government officials are deployed to work for election on duties related to polling/security/election observation etc. All such persons are deemed to be on deputation to the Commission and are subject to its control, supervision and discipline.

The President appoints Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners. They have tenure of six year, or up to the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier. They enjoy the same status as the judges of the Supreme Court of India. The Chief Election Commissioner can be removed from office only through impeachment by Parliament. Election Commissioners including the Chief Election Commissioner have equal say in the decision making of the Commission.

A person who is a citizen of India, has completed 35 years of age and is qualified for election as a member of the House of People, is eligible for election as President of India. He/she should not hold any office of profit under the Government of India or the government of any State or under any local or other authority subject to the control of any of said governments. The President of India is elected by members of an Electoral College consisting of {a} the elected by the members of both the House of Parliament and {b} the elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of the State and the Union Territories with Legislative Assembly {namely NCT of Delhi and UT of Puducherry}. Nominated members are not included in the Electoral College.

Value of vote for each of the members of the Electoral College is decided based on the population census of 1971 and it will continue to be so till population of the first census after 2026 have been published. As stipulated in the Constitution {Article 55}, as far as practicable, uniformity is ensured in the scale of representation of the different States. Thereby value of votes differs from State to State.

The elections¹ are held in accordance with the system of Proportional Representation by means of single transferable vote. Each elector has as many preferences as there are candidates. Term of office of the President of India is 5 years. Shri Pranab Mukherjee assumed office as the 13^th President of India on 25^th July 2012.

¹ The Presidential and Vice Presidential Elections Act, 1952 and the Presidential and Vice Presidential Elections Rules 1974

A person who is a citizen of India, has completed 35 years of age and is qualified for election as a member of the Council of States {Rajya Sabha} is eligible for election as Vice-President. S/he should not hold any office of profit under the government of India or the government of any state or under any local or other authority subject to the control of any of the said governments.

The term of office for the Vice-President is 5 years from the date on which s/he enters upon office.

Electoral College consists of members of both Houses of Parliament including nominated members. Value of vote of each Member of Parliament is one. Each elector has as many preferences as there are candidates. The elections are held in accordance with the system of Proportional Representation by means of single transferable vote. [Article 66 of Constitution of India]

The Vice-President of India is the ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha. The present Vice-President of India is Shri M.Hamid Ansari.

Rajya Sabha is the Upper House of the Parliament of India. Rajya Sabha is a permanent House and is not subject to dissolution. One-third members of Rajya Sabha retire after every second year. Vice President of India is the ex-officio Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha.

As per the Constitution of India [Article 80] maximum strength of Rajya Sabha is 250, out of which 12 members are nominated by the President and not more than 238 are representatives of the States and of the Union Territories. The present strength of Rajya Sabha is 245, out of which 233 are representatives of States and UTs and 12 are nominated by the President. The members nominate by the President are persons having special knowledge or practical experience in respect of such matters as literature, science, art and social service [Article 80]. The allocation of elective seats is made on the basis of the population of each State. Consequent on the reorganization of states and formation of new states, the number of elected seats in the Rajya Sabha allotted to States and Union Territories has changed from time to time since 1952.

A person is qualified for the membership of the Rajya Sabha if S/he is a citizen of India, not less than 30 years of age [Article 84] and is not disqualified under the provisions of the Constitution [ Article 102] or the Representation of the People Act, 1951 [Sections 8 to 10 A]

The election of representatives of the States and of the Union territories in Rajya Sabha is an indirect election. The representatives of each State and the two Union Territories with Legislature are elected by the elected members of the Legislative Assembly of that State/Union Territory in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote. The representatives of the remaining Union Territories may be chosen in such manner as the Parliament may by law provide [Article 80].

The division of each State into as many constituencies as in the Lok Sabha from that state & State Legislative Assemblies is done primarily on the basis of population census. The last delimitation was done under the Delimitation Act of 2002 using figures of population census of 2001. As far as practicable, geographical area of constituencies were to be delimited taking into account physical features, existing boundaries of administrative units, facilities of communication and public convenience.

Number of seats allocated to Lok Sabha and Legislative Assemblies was kept fixed [based on 1971 population census] and the number of seats reserved for SCs and STs was readjusted based on their population as per population census of 2001. State average per Assembly Constituency was the guiding factor for delimiting the constituencies so that each constituency in the state, so far as practicable, has an equal population. Constituencies were delimited having regard to the administrative units, i.e., as it existed on 15^th February,2004. It was also ensured that Assembly Constituencies were not extended to more than one district and the Parliamentary Constituencies in a State to the extent possible were constituted of equal numbers of Assembly Constituencies.

The Delimitation Commission readjusted the territorial extent of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies in all States {including UTs having Legislative Assembly} except¹ the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Nagaland and Jammu & Kashmir in the last delimitation exercise. The Delimitation Order in respect of State of Jharkhand was not given effect in accordance with the provision of section 10B of Delimitation Act 2002. The Election Commission consolidated Orders of the Delimitation Commission as 'The Delimitation of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies Order, 2008'.

The Constitution (One Hundredth Amendment) Act, 2015 was passed on 29^th May, 2015 to give effect to the acquisition of 51 Enclaves from Bangladesh and transfer of 111 Enclaves of India to Bangladesh. Subsequently the Delimitation of 6 Assembly Constituencies of West Bengal was undertaken by the Election Commission in pursuance of "The Election Laws (Amendment) Act, 2016" and the final Order Notifying the changes in the extent of concerned six Assembly Constituencies No. 1-Mekliganj (SC), 5-Sitalkuchi(SC), 6-Sitai(SC), 7-Dinhata, 8-Natabari and 9-Tufanganj Assembly Constituencies and in the extent of 1-Coochbehar(SC), 2-Alipurduars(ST) and 3-Jaipaiguri(SC), Parliamentary Constituencies consequent upon the alteration of the extent of the above mentioned six Assembly Constituencies was Notified on 15^th March, 2016. The transfer of the said territories between India and Bangladesh thereafter took place on 31^st July, 2015.

¹Provisions of Delimitation Act 2002 was not extended to Jammu & Kashmir. Under section 10A of the Delimitation Act 2002, the delimitation exercise in respect of States of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur and Nagaland were deferred.

Lok Sabha is composed of representatives of the people chosen by direct election on the basis of adult suffrage. It is called the House of the People {Lower House of Parliament}. The maximum strength of the House envisaged by the Constitution is 552 {Article 81 & 331}. Which is made up by election of up to 530 members to represent the States, up to 20 members to represent the Union Territories and not more than two members of the Anglo-Indian Community to be nominated by the Honourable President, if, in his/her opinion, that community is not adequately represented in the House. Number of seats in the House of the People as per first Schedule of The Representation of People Act, 1950 is 543.

To become a member of the Lok Sabha, a person should be a citizen of India, not less than 25 years of age and possess such other qualifications as may be prescribed by or under any law made by Parliament of India. Under normal situations, unless dissolved by the President, the Lok Sabha continues for five years from the date appointed for its first meeting. However, this period may be extended by Parliament by law if Emergency is proclaimed. The Speaker and the Deputy Speaker are the Presiding Officers of the Lok Sabha.

The Lok Sabha {House of the people} was duly constituted for the first time on 2nd April 1952 after the first General Election held from 25th October 1951 to 21st February 1952. The Sixteenth Lok Sabha was constituted on 4th June 2014.

Parliament, from time to time, by law makes provision with respect to all matters relating to, or in connection with, elections to the Lok Sabha, including the preparation of electoral rolls, the delimitation of constituencies and all other matters necessary for securing the due constitution of the Lok Sabha.

6.3 : Registration of Political Parties and Symbols

Registration of political parties is governed by the provisions of section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. A party seeking registration under the said section with the Election Commission has to submit an application to the Commission within a period of 30 days following the date of its formation in the prescribed format with basic particulars about the party such as name, address, membership details of various units, names of office bearers, etc. Further, registered political parties, in course of time, can get recognition as 'State Party' or 'National Party' subject to the fulfilment of the conditions prescribed by the Commission in the Election Symbols {Reservation and Allotment} Order, 1968, as amended from time to time.

Commission adopted symbol system since the first general election Lok Sabha in 1951, when literacy rate was only 16%. Election symbols are commonly known objects, animate or inanimate, so that they are easily identifiable by the electors despite their illiteracy and ignorance and are readily distinguishable from each other.

Symbols are not allotted exclusively on registration. Symbols are reserved only for those political parties which, after registration, contest a general election and become eligible for recognition as national or state parties on the basis of their poll performance. Others contesting elections are required to choose, out of a list of free/unreserved symbols, at the time of elections. Registered unrecognized parties get preference in the matter of allotment of free symbols over Independent candidates.

After fourth general election 1967, Election Commission codified provisions relating to recognition of political parties and allotment of symbols at one place as Election Symbols {Reservation and Allotment} Order 1968 which is amended from time to time.

Even though standards of literacy since independence have vastly improved, symbol system has become a permanent feature of elections and electoral system in India. Political parties have become identified with their symbols. Electoral system did not change with introduction of Electronic Voting Machines {EVMs}. EVMs are electronic version of paper ballots with name and photograph of contestants and their symbols. Currently, 1814 (as on 13.12.2016) political parties are registered with Election Commission of India. Of these 7 are recognized national parties, 48 recognized state parties and 178 unrecognized parties.

Polling stations are generally setup for 1200 electors in rural areas and 1400 electors in urban areas barring exceptions. Polling stations are set up by district election officers with the approval of Election Commission. Separate polling stations are allowed for 300 or even fewer electors in remote locations. The total number of polling stations as of December 2016 in the country is 9, 68,752.

6.5 : Electoral Participation

Number of registered electors, voter turnout, and number of nominations filed, contesting candidates and participating political parties are some indices of electoral participation in democracy. Electoral participation rates depend on many factors, including the type of social groupings to which voters belong, voters' perceptions and beliefs, their places of residence, and a host of other factors. The Election Commission of India has adopted Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation [SVEEP] strategy to increase peoples' participation in the electoral process.

6.6 : Lok Sabha Election 2014

General Election to Lok Sabha was held in 2014 to constitute the 16th Lok Sabha. The Election Commission of India announced the schedule of General Election on 5th March 2014 and subsequently polling was held across the country on ten polling days between 7th April 2014 and 12th May 2014 and counting was done on 16th May 2014. Some innovative and best practices witnessed in Lok Sabha Election 2014 were:

• Advance planning and preparation for all law and Order related plans was put in place.
• Arrangements for treatment of all security personnel who sustained injury during election duty; including cashless facility at hospitals
• The option of NOTA [None of the Above] on Electronic Voting Machines was introduced pan- India for the first time in Lok Sabha elections 2014
• VVPATs [Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trial] were introduced in select PCs to ensure further transparency of recording of votes. After introducing an amendment to the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, a printer with a drop box was attached to a voting machine for printing a paper trail of the vote.
• Voter slips were distributed across the country for Lok Sabha election to enable the voters to know at which polling stations/he is enrolled as a voter and their serial number in the electoral roll. All states reported a very high percentage of distribution of voter slips, between 90 to 100%.
• Awareness Observers were deployed in Lok Sabha election to monitor the Systematic Voter Education and Electoral Participation [SVEEP] activities conducted in States /Union Territories along with observing the working of Media Certification and Monitoring Committees {MCMCs]. These were senior cadre officers from the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting.
• In a bid to attract voters to the polling booths and give a festive look to the electoral exercise, some model polling stations were set up across the country. The concept of model polling stations was brought about to provide a friendly and pleasant experience to the voters when they came to the polling station to cast their votes. Besides basic minimum facilities like drinking water, shelters, toilets, ramps for accessibility at all the polling stations; additional facilities like waiting halls, first aid kits etc. were also provided.
• As a part of inclusion process, 'transgenders 'were categorised as 'third genders' in these elections. Of the total 28527 other electorate, 1968 voters exercised their right to vote.
• Overseas Indian Residents were given right to vote provided they were registered themselves at the time of voting at their place of ordinary residence in India. Among the total 13039 electorate, 12234 were men and 804 were women. Of these, 10 exercised their right to vote.

6.6.6 : Votes Polled for 'NOTA'

According to the directions of Hon'ble Supreme Court, the Election Commission made provision in the ballot papers/EVMs for None of the Above [NOTA] option so that the voters who come to the polling booth and decide not to vote for any of the candidates in the fray, are able to exercise their right not to vote for any candidate while maintain the secrecy of their ballot. The provision for NOTA has been made since General Election to State Legislative Assemblies of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, NCT of Delhi and Rajasthan in October – December 2013 and continued in the General Election to State Legislative Assemblies of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha and Sikkim in April – May 2014 along with the General Elections to Lok Sabha 2014.

The votes polled against the NOTA option are not taken into account for calculating the total valid votes polled by the contesting candidates for the purpose of return of security deposits to candidates. Even if the number of electors opting for NOTA option is more than the number of votes polled by any of the candidates, the candidate who secures the largest number of votes has to be declared elected.

Since introduction of NOTA, Rules 49 [0] of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961 [relating to electors deciding not to vote] has been repealed.

Symbol for NOTA has been introduced in 2015

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The Prime Minister of India is the Head of the Union [Federal] Government, as distinct from the President of India, who is the Head of State. The President of India appoints the leader of the party or alliance of parties that enjoys majority support in the Lok Sabha [Lower House of Indian Parliament] as Prime Minister. The Prime Minister leads the executive branch of the Government of India.

As Head of the Council of Ministers, the Prime Minister aids and advise the President and oversees the work of all the Ministries. He presides over Cabinet meetings and is responsible for bringing proposals of legislation. The resignation or death of the Prime Minister dissolves the Cabinet.

The entire expenditure on actual conduct of elections to Lok sabha is borne by Government of India and such expenditure on conduct of election to State Legislatures by the respective State Governments when such elections are held independently. If concurrent election to Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assembly is held then the expenditure is shared between Central and respective State Governments.

Expenditure incurred on items of common concern to the Central and the State Governments like expenditure on regular election establishment, preparation and revision of electoral roll etc. is shared on 50:50 basis irrespective of whether such expenditure is incurred in connection with the elections to the Lok Sabha or State Legislatures. Even if election is to Lok Sabha, expenditure towards law & order maintenance is born by respective State Governments only.

8.2 Expenditure Monitoring

Expenditure ceiling has been specified for contesting candidates. Preventive action is undertaken to curb the illegal expenditure. Components of legal expenditure are regulated under section 10 A, section 77 and section 78 of the Representation of People Act, 1951.

The Commission has disqualified several contesting candidates for failure to lodge expenditure for a period of three years under section 10 A.

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Constitution of India [Article 168 & 169] provides for bi-cameral legislatures in certain States. The maximum strength of the Legislative Council of State is fixed at one-third of strength of the Legislative Assembly of that State and not less than 40. Legislative Council like the Rajya Sabha is a permanent House and not subject to dissolution. It is the Upper House of State Legislature and at present there are seven Legislative Councils in the country. Union Parliament has the power to create or abolish the Legislative Council on the basis of resolutions adopted by special majority in the Assembly of the concerned State. The Council members are elected by members of Legislative Assembly of respective states, by members of local bodies, by graduates, by teachers of secondary schools and by nomination by Governor from among persons possessing special knowledge and experience in the field of Art , Science, Literature, Social Science and cooperative movement. Minimum age limit to be a member of Legislative Council is 30 years. A person seeking election to a Legislative Council has to be enrolled in the electoral roll for any of the Assembly Constituencies in that State. Members are elected for a period of 6 years and one third members retire every second year.

Elections to the State Legislative Councils are held under the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote [Article 171].

The Vidhan Sabha or the 'Legislative Assembly 'is the lower house [in bicameral States] or the sole house [in unicameral States] of the State legislature in different States of India. There are 30 State Legislative Assemblies in 28 States and 2 Union Territories of Delhi and Puducherry. Members of a Vidhan Sabha are direct representatives of the people of the particular State as they are directly elected by an electorate consisting of all citizens of the age of 18 years and above of that State. Each Vidhan Sabha is formed for a five-year term after which all seats are up for election. The Vidhan Sabha can be dissolved before completion of term by the Governor or its term can be extended during emergency [Article 172(1)]

For a person to become a member of Legislative Assembly, s/he should be a citizen of India and not less than 25 years of age and should be registered in the electoral roll of any constituency in the state.

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3rd tier of governance in both rural and urban areas [local bodies] was given constitutional backing by the 73rd and 74th constitutional amendments. It envisaged the setting up of State Election Commission [SEC] consisting of a State Election Commissioner to be appointed by the Governor of the state for conducting these elections. District Panchayats, Intermediate Panchayats and Village Panchayats in rural areas and Municipal Corporations, Municipal Councils and Town/Nagar Panchayats in urban areas are set up for five years from the date appointed for its first meeting and elections are to be completed before the expiry of its duration or six months from the date of its dissolution.

The Superintendence, direction and control of preparation of electoral rolls and conduct of all elections to rural and urban local bodies vest with the SECs. There are 31 SECs in the country. In the Constitutional framework, laws regarding Panchayat elections are framed by States, and therefore, there is variation across States.

General elections were held to constitute the Legislative Assemblies of five States of Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and UT of Puducherry during 2016 before the completion of terms of respective Assemblies. 27 bye elections were held to fill up casual vacancies caused due to resignation or death or disqualification of sitting members. Scheduling of elections are done considering social, educational, infrastructural, climatic and other factors. All aspects of election preparedness are reviewed for each State/UT and relevant instructions are issued to the CEOs for ensuring efficient conduct of the elections. Conduct of election involves updation of electoral roll, scheduling and announcement of the elections, nominations and symbol allocation, logistics and other security arrangements, ensuring level playing field for all candidates, and handling of cases, etc. Data on all of these aspects have been included in this chapter.

Population estimates are prepared by RGI and Census Commissioner, Government of India. Gap in registration has been estimated for the year 2017 based on the population estimates and the actual registration to the electoral roll after Final Publication of the roll in January 2017. To estimate the eligible elector population for the year 2017, the 15+ cohort of Sample Registration System of RGI, 2014 was used to get % population in different age groups.Estimated population for 2014 has been segregated based on these percentages to arrive at estimated population in these age groups.

Eligible elector population and the estimated total population in the country for a year is presented as Elector Population (EP) ratio. For the year 2017, the EP Ratio is 72%.

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