The Hindu : Kerala News : Integration of voters' list preparation mooted

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Nov 29, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

Integration of voters' list preparation mooted

By N.J. Nair

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, NOV. 28. The State Election Commission (SEC) has mooted a proposal to integrate the preparation of electoral rolls by amending the Representation of the People Act.

Now two sets of voters' list are being prepared, one by the Election Commission of India and the other by the State Election Commission. This leads to a colossal waste of public funds and hence the Commission has suggested the integration of the process of preparing the electoral rolls.

SEC proposal

As per the proposal mooted by the State Election Commissioner, N. Mohandas, at a national conference of State Election Commissioners held in Delhi recently, it is possible to adopt a building-block approach by considering the panchayat or municipality ward as the basic unit and then aggregating them to prepare the Assembly and Lok Sabha electoral rolls. This can be done by making suitable amendments to the Act. Grama sabhas are considered as the most effective unit at the grassroots, involving people in development and all other important activities in a locale and hence the process of verification of voters' list at the grama sabha level is ideal, according to him.

The office of the Chief Electoral Officer can be abolished and the powers can be conferred on the State Election Commission. The State Election Commissioners can also be notified as Regional Commissioners as mentioned in Article 324(4) of the Constitution.

The service conditions of the State Election Commissioners are not uniform. In certain States, the tenure is six years and the status and emoluments are equivalent to that of a High Court judge. The Commissioner here has been given status and emoluments of the Chief Secretary. The Commissioners should be given the status of a High Court judge and a Constitutional amendment is imperative, the proposal says.

Code of conduct

The Commission has also proposed a common code of conduct for elected members to local self-government institutions all over the country. The election will have to be notified by the State Election Commission in the gazette in Kerala.

It has been clearly stated in the Kerala Panchayati Raj Act that a member who has not taken oath before the authorised officer within a month after the declaration of the result will have to quit.

Following the directives of the Supreme Court, the Election Commission of India had adopted a concept of each candidate filing an affidavit of self-disclosure. The commission has made a proposal to amend the Kerala Panchayati Raj Act, 1994, and the Kerala Municipalities Act, 1994, making it mandatory for the candidates to file an affidavit disclosing their educational qualification, assets and liabilities and involvement in criminal cases.

The State Government has accepted the proposal in principle and is taking steps to introduce a Bill in the Assembly on its basis. The Commission has also suggested the inclusion of a provision in the Acts to enable the court to set aside the election of a winning candidate if he files a false affidavit.

Now the Commission cannot initiate action in such cases for want of specific provisions in the Act and rules.

Another proposal is to fix the minimum and maximum population of a panchayat ward. In certain States, the population of a ward is 350, whereas there are wards in the State that have a population of more than 3,000. Hence the need to fix the population limit in a panchayat ward, the proposal says.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Kerala

News Update

Stories in this Section

RSP(B) leaders arrested, released on bail

Balan & Associates Redefining the art of fine curtain furnishing

Integration of voters' list preparation mooted

Thamarakshan group may find the going tough in UDF

Education programme for minorities

Science fair prizes given away

Five youths killed in car-truck collision

`Destination Clean' to preserve beauty of tourist spots

Protest against attack on journalists

Heavy rush of devotees at Sabarimala

Health Department postings: new guidelines soon

`Dial before divorce'

Today at Sabarimala