In a significant step towards taking bilateral relations to a new level, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Barack Obama agreed to set up a hotline between the top leaders for the first time. A hotline is supposedly used in the most crucial moments in international relations. According to Modi, this initiative would give India-US partnership “a new thrust and sustained attention.” Both Obama and Modi agreed that India and the US must have regular summits at greater frequency. Although India maintains several hotlines with China and Pakistan at the military level, it is the [...]Read more
All civic bodies have clearly demarcated areas for administration and their own respective geographical areas under them. Similarly, there is certain geographical region – mostly having military institutions, referred to as cantonment area – where private properties are also situated – which is administered by a separate body called Cantonment Board, which is under the control of Ministry of Defence. For this Board, representatives are elected from among the residents of the cantonment area. Cantonments were originally quarters assigned for lodging troops, a permanent military station created by the British Government in India for the location of military [...]Read more
Election in India is the largest exercise of its kind in the democratic world. In the election process, the filing of nomination papers by candidates is a very important task. Under Section 14/15 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, the filing of nomination starts on the date of notification by the President/Governor. The Returning Officer (RO) issues public notice of election (under Section 31) in Form -1 (appended to CE Rules, 61). The public notice has to be under the signature of the RO only as no other authority can issue this public notice. Who [...]Read more
India is a parliamentary democracy and has a federal structure, whereby it is run by elected officials at both national and state levels. There are several factors that decide the government-formation. Here is a quick look : Forming Government at the Centre As the existing strength of the Lok Sabha is 543, the magic figure comes to 272 that ensures a party or alliance’s majority in the House, necessary to form the government. With large number of regional parties coming in the fray and contesting Lok Sabha elections, it generally becomes difficult for a single party to reach [...]Read more
One of the vital steps that independent India took was the effort towards eradication of untouchability. Finally, the Indian Constitution abolished the practice of untouchability in 1950. The lawmakers included provisions within the Constitution that can provide measures for positive discrimination in both educational institutions and public services for the socially backward groups. Article 17 of the Indian Constitution is a legislation that abolishes practice of untouchability in any form. According to the provision of Article 17, “enforcement of any disability arising out of untouchability” is a punishable offence in accordance with law. Purpose of Article 17 [...]Read more
With Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections round the corner, the demand for voting rights has again resurfaced among the refugees in the state. Most of them had migrated to the state during the wars of 1947, 1965 and 1971 from Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK). Let alone the property rights, this chunk of population doesn’t have the right to vote during the state elections and contribute towards the greater consensus when it comes to electing people’s representatives. However, these refugees have voting rights for the parliamentary elections. The Legal Complications regarding Voting Rights in J & K Those [...]Read more
Common citizens contesting elections and surfacing as an alternative to the established political parties is a growing phenomenon that saw its emergence in the 1980s. Since then, there has been a huge rise in the number of independent candidates who tried to fill in the void that the big political parties couldn’t. Often candidates decide to contest elections alone since they don’t find any political party aligned to their political beliefs. Eligibility Criteria for Independent Candidates to Contest Elections Whether the independent candidate wants to contest the Lok Sabha elections or the Assembly elections, he has to [...]Read more
In democracy, it is not simply enough to inform voters about election dates. In order to help the electorates take an informed decision, it is quintessential to sensitise them about the importance of participating in the electoral process. Moreover, voters need to be educated about the process and made aware of the political parties, their manifestos, backgrounds of the contesting candidates and armed with several other information to help them cast an ‘enlightened’ vote. Efforts of Election Commission to Create Voters’ Awareness In one of the recent efforts to motivate voters to exercise their right to vote [...]Read more
Electoral Roll, also referred as the voter’s list, is the official list of all those people in a constituency who are entitled to vote in an election. Every citizen of India above the age of 18 is required to get enrolled in the voter’s list so that he/she is able to exercise the right to vote. Besides facilitating smooth conduct of democratic processes, it also helps in preventing electoral fraud. Eligibility Criteria for Enrollment in Electoral Roll As per the Article 326 of Indian Constitution and Section 19 of the Representation of the People (R.P.) Act of [...]Read more
The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) is the nodal officer who is in charge of ensuring implementation of all the provisions of electoral laws in the state. He functions under the direction and supervision of the Election Commission of India (ECI) as outlined in the Representation of the People Act, 1950 & 1951. Besides overseeing the conduct of state elections, he has other multi-faceted roles to play. Pre-Election Responsibilities of CEO From the time, the dates of the elections are announced, the CEO gets into the task of ensuring compliance of some vital activities including meeting with political [...]Read more