The inclusion of NOTE in panchayat elections in these states and improvements to NOTE may require changes or additions to these laws and rules. In 2018, Maharashtra`s State Election Commission (SEC) investigated local elections over the past two years and found several cases where NOTA won more votes than winning candidates. To give some examples:[45] In the Bori gram panchayat polls in Pune district, NOTA received 85.57% of the vote; At the Mankarwadi gram panchayat polling stations in the same district, 204 of the 330 valid votes went to NOTA. The Khugaon Khurd sarpanch in Nanded district received only 120 votes, while NOTA received 627 of the total 849 votes. Similarly, in a municipal election in the village of Khavadi in Lanja Tehsil, the winning candidate received 130 votes out of 441 valid votes, while NOTA received 210 votes. Instructions up to 18.11.2018 can be found here. For further instructions, please consult the Supreme Court in PUCL v. The 2013 decision of the Indian Union ordered the use of NOTA in direct elections to the Lok Sabha and the respective state assemblies. The NOTA option was first used in the 2013 parliamentary elections in four states (Chhattisgarh, Mizoram, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh) as well as the Union Territory of Delhi. Since its launch, NOTA has gained popularity among Indian voters, winning more votes than winning general elections in Gujarat (2017),[2], Karnataka (2018),[3] Madhya Pradesh (2018)[4] and Rajasthan (2018). [5] NOTE allows voters to express their opposition to the candidates presented. It is not clear whether this protest has so far translated into compensatory measures on the part of the elected government. At the time of the NOTA ruling, the Chief Justice of India, P.
Sathasivam is quoted as saying: “Giving a voter the right not to vote for a candidate while protecting his right to secrecy is extremely important in a democracy. Such an option gives the voter the right to express his or her disapproval of the type of candidates put forward by the parties. Gradually, there will be a change of system and parties will be forced to accept the will of the people and put forward candidates known for their integrity. [31] In many elections, NOTA won more votes than many competing political parties. [3] [13] It was observed that some of the highest NOTE votes are consistently observed in reserved constituencies (constituencies which, due to their demographic composition, only need to field candidates from reserved categories to participate in elections). This could be interpreted as a refusal by general voters to vote for an SC/ST candidate[25] – a scenario in which NOTA is misused to perpetuate caste-based bias. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the MP accused of 2G fraud – A Raja (DMK candidate) – lost to the AIADMK candidate, while NOTA emerged with the third largest share of the vote, perhaps as an expression of public anger against corrupt candidates. [17] The Haryana SEC also followed suit, stating in November 2018 that NOTA would be treated as a mock candidate and that re-elections would be held if NOTA won a majority of votes in the upcoming December 2018 municipal elections. [47] “None of the above” (or NOTA) has been made available to Indian voters as an option in most elections since 2009. The vote has no electoral value: even if the majority of votes are cast, the candidate with the largest share of votes is declared the winner. [1] By not giving preference to any of the above, a citizen may choose not to vote for candidates participating in elections. NOTA was not included in the 2015 Kerala Panchayat elections.
[42] “Some argue that implementing NOTE will increase election costs. But a depraved candidate who engages in corruption and abuse is a higher price to pay for the country. Only the desire to stay in power and the greed for money take precedence over values. In the 2019 Indian general election, about 1.04% of voters voted for None Of The Above (NOTA), with Bihar and Assam leading with 2.08% of NOTE voters. [18] A written petition was filed by the People`s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL). The ruling of the Supreme Court of India states: “We require the Election Commission to provide the necessary arrangements in the ballots/EVM, and another button called `None of the above` (NOTA) can be provided in the EVMs so that voters who come to the polling booth and choose not to vote for any of the candidates in the struggle can exercise their right to refuse to vote while respecting their right to vote. incommunicado. [6] The Supreme Court also noted that it is important that people with high moral and ethical values be chosen as representatives of the people for an appropriate government of the country, and NOTA-Button can force political parties to nominate a strong candidate. Section 79(d) of the Representation of the People Act 1951 also recognises the right “not to vote at an election”. [43] The “Representation of the People Act” applies to “. either the House of Parliament or the House or either House of a state legislature. [44] The recognition of the “right to vote” and the right to “not vote” is not made in the laws relating to the election of panchayats in Kerala.
However, it seems that the popularity of NOTA is increasing over time. NOTA has yet to secure a majority, but in many elections since its inception – including the 2014 Lok Sabha elections as well as several parliamentary elections – the number of NOTA votes has been above the margin in many constituencies.