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NOTA
Context:
In the recent Lok Sabha elections, the Indore constituency witnessed a significant number of votes cast for NOTA, exceeding 2 lakh.
About None of the Above (NOTA):
- The “None of the Above” (NOTA) option allows voters to formally express their rejection of all running candidates.
- Selecting NOTA as a voting option signifies that the voter has not selected any party to support.
- NOTA also complies with the constitutional principles of Articles 19 (right to freedom) and 326 (right to vote) of the Indian Constitution.
- Evolution of NOTA:
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- Pre-EVM system: Ballot papers:
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- Before the introduction of EVMs, voters could cast a NOTA vote by dropping an unmarked ballot paper into the ballot box.
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- This allowed voters to express disapproval of all candidates without making a mark.
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- Although such ballots were considered invalid, they effectively served as a NOTA vote.
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- Introduction of EVM:
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- The advent of EVMs eliminated the ability to cast a NOTA vote as machines did not have a button for the ‘NOTA’ option.
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- If the voter, after having his/her presence at the polling booth registered, decided to not cast a vote, then “a remark to this effect shall be made by the presiding officer and the signature or thumb impression of the elector shall be obtained against such remark.”
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- When a voter decides to not cast her vote, anyone present in the polling booth would know that the voter has decided not to vote, as the machine would not emit any light or sound (as it does when a vote is cast).
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- This violates the secrecy of the ballot. The decision to cast a vote is treated differently from the decision not to cast a vote.
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- The lack of secrecy of the ballot in case a voter decided to not cast a vote was challenged before the Supreme Court as being violative of the voter’s ‘right to vote’.
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- People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) vs Union of India: The Supreme Court directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to introduce the NOTA option for voters in 2013, to protect the secrecy of voters’ choice.
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- Impact of NOTA:
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- NOTA has no legal consequence attached to it — even if the highest number of votes in a seat are polled for NOTA, the second most successful candidate wins.
- The petition is pending before the court elections to be considered “null and void” if NOTA receives the highest number of votes in the constituency.
