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Electoral Reforms
Definition : Electoral reforms in India refers to the evolution and
modification of the electoral system in India.

Need for electoral reforms

1. Ensuring free and fair elections (Article 324): Electoral
reforms aim to address the issues of electoral malpractices and
ensure that elections are conducted in a free and fair manner.
2. Enhancing voter participation- Electoral reforms aim to
increase voter turnout and to address the issue of voter apathy,
difficulty in accessing polling booths, etc.
3. Reducing the influence of money and muscle
power- Electoral reforms help to reduce the influence of money
and muscle power by regulating campaign finance and ensuring the
safety of voters.
4. Encouraging transparency and accountability- Electoral
reforms initiate the measures such as mandatory disclosure of
criminal records by candidates and the use of technology to
monitor the electoral process. Thus they help in enhancing the
transparency and accountability of elections in India.
5. Addressing electoral inequalities- Electoral reforms aim
to bring down the inequalities such as the under-representation of
women and marginalized communities.

Various electoral reforms from independence

Major Electoral Reforms Before 1996

MCC Introduced in 1969

 EVMs were introduced for the first time for conducting
general election in Kerala in May 1982. In 2004, in the
Introduction of EVMs 1982
General Election to the Lok Sabha, the EVMs were used
in all 543 Parliamentary Constituencies in the country.

The Voting age was reduced from 21 years to 18

Lowering of Voting Age years by the 61st Constitutional Amendment Act of
1988 1988, to encourage the youth to express their voice
via vote.

To prevent the non-serious candidates from

Increase in the Number of contesting, the number of proposers were increased
Proposers 1988 for filing nomination papers to the Rajya Sabha and
State Legislative Council.

A provision was made for the adjournment of polls or

Anti Booth capturing
countermanding elections in case of booth capturing
Provisions 1989
in 1989.

Election Commission started issuing Elector’s Photo

Elector’s Photo Identity Identity Card (EPIC) for registered voters.
Card (EPIC) 1993

In 1989, a provision is made that the officers and the

staff engaged in preparation revision and correction
Deputation to the election
of electoral rolls for elections are deemed to the
comission
Election commission for the period of such
employment

Major electoral Reforms in 1996 on the recommendations of

Dinesh Goswami Committee

Candidates wanting to contest elections were further

Listing of names of divided three categories- a. Political party,
candidates b. Registered and Un-registered Party and
c. Independent Candidates

A person convicted for the offenses under the

Disqualification under
Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act of 1971
Prevention of Insults to
is disqualified to contest in the elections to the
the National Honour Act
Parliament and State Legislature for 6 years
 The nomination of a candidate in a Parliamentary or
assembly constituency should be subscribed by 10
Increase in the number of
registered electors of the constituency as proposers if
proposers
the candidate is not sponsored by a recognized political
party.

A candidate would not be eligible to contest from more

Contestants restricted to
than two Parliamentary/assembly constituencies and
two constituencies
Rajya sabha/State legislative council

By-Elections were to be held in six months since the

By-Elections
vacancy

Introduction of strict Strict prohibition on Arms and Sale of liquor near polling
prohibitions area

Election wouldn’t countermanded on the death of the

contesting candidate before election
Death of the candidate
If the deceased candidate belongs to a recognised
party , have option to propose another candidate within
7 days

Holiday to employees on
Paid holiday to all registered voters
the polling day

The minimum gap between the last date for withdrawal

Effective campaigning
of candidature and the polling date has been reduced
period reduced
from 20 to 14

Major Electoral Reforms after 1996

Number of Proposers and Seconders for contesting

Increase in the number of Election to President and Vice president were changes
proposers and seconders accordingly-
1997 a. President: From 10 to 50
b. Vice President: From 5 to 20

Provision was made for voting through Postal Ballot in

Postal Ballot 1999 1999 under circumstances by the permission of
Election Commission for any class persons.

Electoral Reforms in 2003

Introduction of proxy A provision was made for voters from Armed forces to
voting opt their vote through proxy.
 The Election Commission issued an order directing
Declaration of criminal every candidate to disclose the information on the
antecedents, assets matters of conviction, accusation, assets, and any
liabilities.

Free supply of electoral Election Commission passed a provision for free supply
rolls and travel of electoral rolls and exemptions were made in
exemptions travelling expenses made by Candidates.

The political parties had to report any contribution in

Parties entitled to accept
excess of ₹20,000 to the Election Commission for
contribution
claiming income tax relief.

Allocation for sharing of time on media and cable to

Allocation of time on each candidate was made by Election Commission.
media
Introduction of Braille Signage features in EVM.

Electoral Reforms Since 2003

Prohibition were imposed on conducting Exit

Prohibition on exit polls 2009
Polls and publishing the results of exit polls.

A three-month time limit was added within which

the specified authority will have to submit the
Time limit for submitting a
case of a person found guilty of corrupt practice
case for disqualification 2009
to the President to determine the question of
disqualification.

The amount of security deposit to be paid by the

Increase in security deposit
candidates contesting elections to the Lok Sabha
2009
was increased from ₹10,000 to ₹25,000

Every Indian Citizen living outside India is entitled

to get his name registered in the Parliamentary
Registration of Indian Citizen
or Assembly near the place of residence
living outside India 2010
mentioned in his/her passport and are entitled to
receive their voting rights

Electoral Reforms in 2013

Election Commission made the provision for

Electoral roll Online Online filling of the application form in the
electoral roll.

Addition of NOTA option in the Apex Court of India directed election commission
 to add NOTA ( None of the above) option in
EVMs
EVM’s

Election Commission introduced VVPAT (Voter

Introduction of VVPAT Verifiable Paper Audit Trail) for verification of
voters vote.

Allowing persons in jail or The Representation of the People Act, 1951 was
police custody to contest amended in 2013 to allow the persons in jail or
elections police custody to contest elections.

Supreme Court, in Lily Thomas case (2013), held

that convicted MPs and MLAs will be
Immediate disqualification of
immediately disqualified from holding
convicted MPs and MLAs
membership of the House without being given
three months’ time for appeal.

Electoral Reforms after 2013

Government raised the maximum ceiling on

election expenditure of Lok Sabha
Increase in election from Rs.40,00,000 to Rs.70,00,000. In bigger
expenditure 2013 states assembly seats
was increased from Rs.16,00,000 to
Rs.28,00,000

Election Commission passed the order that EVM

Pics of candidates on EVMs will carry the picture / photo of candidate,
2015 his/her name and symbol of the party to avoid
the confusion amongst the common people.

Ceiling on cash donations lowered- The limit

for anonymous cash donations by any individual
to a political party was lowered from ₹20,000 to
₹2,000.
Electoral Bonds 2017
Cap on corporate contributions
lifted- The limit on corporate contributions from
7.5% of the net profit of a company’s past three
financial years was removed.

Foreign funding Allowed from 2018

Election laws amendment act 2021

  Linking of electoral roll data with the aadhar ecosystem in order to
avoid multiple enrolment .
 January 1 , April 1 , July 1 , October 1 in a calender year for the
revision of electoral rolls
 Allowed spouses of service voters to caste their vote in person or
through postal ballot

 In 2024: Home voting for people with disabilities and people above the
age of 85 years.

Committee recommentions
1.Dinesh Goswami Committee (1990) [ table above]

2.Tarkunde Committee (1975)

Also known as the Citizens’ Commission on Elections, this committee

was led by Justice V. M. Tarkunde.
It made pioneering recommendations, including the introduction of
proportional representation and state funding of elections.

3.Indrajit Gupta Committee (1998)

Chaired by former Home Minister Indrajit Gupta, this committee strongly

advocated for state funding of elections to ensure a level playing field for
all candidates and to combat the influence of wealthy donors and black
money in politics.

4.Second Administrative Reforms Commission (2008)

This commission, chaired by Veerappa Moily, also touched upon

electoral reforms in its recommendations.

It emphasized the need for greater transparency in campaign financing

and suggested measures to strengthen the Election Commission.

5.Vohra Committee (1993)

 Although not directly related to electoral reforms, the Vohra Committee
Report dealt with the criminalization of politics and its nexus with
organized crime, which indirectly influences electoral integrity.

6.Justice Jeevan Reddy Committee (2002)

This committee was tasked with reviewing the workings of the electoral
trust scheme, which was a significant aspect of political funding reforms.

7.Law Commission Reports

The Law Commission of India, through its 170th Report (1999) and 255th
Report (2015), made extensive recommendations on electoral
reforms.These reports addressed issues such as the appointment of
election commissioners, the decriminalisation of politics, regulation of
political parties, and electoral finance reforms.

Challenges
1. Booth Capturing- Even in new era and world of developments,
there are reported incidents of violence and intimidation of voters
at the booth. For ex- Violence at polling booths in Bengal
Panchayati Elections
2. Criminalisation of Politics- Despite the EC’s measures
regarding the disclosure of criminal records, the parties have not
refrained from giving tickets to candidates having serious criminal
antecedents. For ex- About 40% of sitting MPs have criminal cases
registered against them out of which 25% have declared serious
criminal cases under charges of murder.
3. Violation of Model Code of Conduct- The elections in India
witness violations of the model code of conduct by the candidates
and the political parties. For ex- Illegal use of public
places, loudspeakers, money for votes etc.
4. Electoral Finance- Electoral finance has always been an
Achilles heel problem for elections in India. Laundered and Black
money are major sources of electoral finance. For ex- SC recently
stuck down Electoral bond scheme on the issue of lack of
transparency in funding.
5. Electoral Overspending- The political parties have no
expenditure limit in the elections. This is exploited by the
candidates for over expenditure in their constituencies during the
election. For ex- Star campaigners expenditure is not included in
candidate’s expenditure.
6. Use of casteism and communalism card- The elections in
India witness the card of casteism, communalism and regionalism
played by the political parties to garner votes. These lead to social
fragmentation of the electorate. For ex- Use of Hate Speech in
elections

Way forward
1. One Candidate one Constituency- The Representation of
People’s Act must be amended to provide that a person cannot
contest from more than one constituency at a time.
2. Lifetime Ban on contesting elections after
conviction- Election commission has endorsed the call for a
lifetime ban which would ‘champion the cause of decriminalization
of politics‘.
3. Ban on advertisements six months prior to
election- Advertisements of achievements of the
governments, either Central or State, should be prohibited for a
period of six months prior to the date of expiry of the term of the
House.
4. False Declarations to be an offence- Election Commission
proposes that making false declarations concerning elections be an
offense under RPA.
5. Rules making under RPA to be conferred to the EC- Rule-
making authority under the Representation of the People Act, 1950,
and Representation of the People Act, 1951, should be conferred on
the Election Commission instead of the Central Government.
6. Use of common Electoral Rolls- There should be the use of
common electoral rolls at elections conducted by the Election
Commission and the State Election Commissions.
7. Disqualification under anti-defection law- The decisions
relating to anti-defection matters should be rendered by the
President or the Governor with the recommendation of the Election
Commission.
8. Explore setting up of National Electoral Fund- The idea of
National Electoral Fund, put forth by former chief election
commissioner T.S. Krishnamurthy, can be explored as an
alternative to state funding of election. This fund would allow
contributions from all donors. The money will then go to the parties
according to the results of the elections or any other principle that
all parties would agree upon.