Electoral reform in India

Pledge in the Indelible Ink Bottle Package - "To cast vote, I shall not be bribed or corrupted in any manner. They are dangerous to our nation."

A number of measures has been suggested to improvise and strengthen the existing electoral practices in India.

Proposals

A few of the proposals related to electoral reforms in India include:

MLA or MP only for 2 terms, and Retirement Age limit for Executive posts

No one can be elected as an MLA or MP for more than 2 terms (10 years). Also No one should hold executive posts (Ministerial posts) if the age is above retirement age of 60.

NOTA

Main Article: NOTA in Indian Elections

Totalizer

Main Article: Totaliser

Simultaneous Elections

Main Article: One Nation, One Election

There has been discussions and consultations about conducting national and state legislature elections simultaneously [1] [2].

Transparency in funding of political parties

The necessity for transparency in financial accounts of political parties and political donations have been in discussion. [3] Political parties must be pulled under the ambit of RTI act.

Decriminalization of politics

There must be some rules to stop contesting in an election for the candidates having a criminal background.

Online Voting

Online voting must be encouraged to increase the percentage of voting during election.
See also:
Concerns with Electronic Voting, Security issues related to EVMs in India, Booth Capturing, Tampering with EVMs.


Candidates to contest from a single seat

Currently, candidates are allowed to contest elections simultaneously from two seats.[4] If a candidate wins from both the seats, a by-election happens. This requires additional expenditure, resources and participation of many. A by-election that happens this way is also an indication of a lack of respect towards the citizens of that constituency. There has thus been suggestions of allowing candidates to contest only from a single seat[5].

Benefits

It is expected that electoral reforms will contribute to better participation of the citizens in electoral practices, reduce corruption and strengthen democracy in India.[6]

More than 3000 crores were spent by the government for conducting the 2014 Loksabha elections[7].

References

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