"ECI's IT Systems Raise Electoral Accountability Concerns"
ECINET
the Election Commission of India's central IT platform for managing voter registration and electoral rolls
Electoral Registration Officer (ERO)
the constituency-level official legally responsible for preparing and revising the electoral roll
The Election Commission of India (ECI) is a constitutional body. Article 324 gives the ECI the power to manage and control elections to Parliament and state legislatures. The ECI has three members: a Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners. The President appoints them. The ECI also works like a court. It settles disputes about political party recognition and election symbols.
Electoral rolls are the official lists of voters who can vote. The Representation of the People Act, 1950 and the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960 control them. Electoral rolls are prepared by Electoral Registration Officers (EROs) at the constituency level under a decentralised design. This design keeps roll preparation close to voters. It also allows voters to object to errors. This decentralisation is a deliberate legal choice. It is not an accident of administration.
Compare this with the Delimitation Commission. This body redraws constituency boundaries after a Census. Its orders cannot be challenged in court. Once laid before Parliament or a state legislature, they cannot be changed either. This protection is strong. But it comes from an explicit law with a clear parliamentary laying procedure. An official quietly adding an unauthorised rule to a database is very different. It is more troubling because it has no statutory basis.
Four Delimitation Commissions have been set up by the Government of India till December 2023. A candidate may contest from multiple Lok Sabha constituencies in a single election. If elected from more than one, the candidate's party must pay for bye-elections to the seats that are now empty.
ECINET is the ECI's central technology platform. It manages voter registration and the electoral roll. When an official changes this system directly, without amending the notified Rules, the change becomes one of the de facto rules that are difficult to challenge in court. It works as a practical requirement for voters. But no law or rule ever created it. This happened when new fields appeared in the digital Form 6. These fields asked for details of a voter's parents or grandparents. This was for first-time voter registration. But this requirement is not found anywhere in the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960.
Section 28 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950 requires any change to these Rules to be made by notification and laid before Parliament. …
With reference to the Delimitation Commission, consider the following statements:
1.The orders of the Delimitation Commission cannot be challenged in a Court of Law.
2.When the orders of the Delimitation Commission are laid before the Lok Sabha or State Legislative Assembly, they cannot effect any modifications in the orders.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Consider the following statements:
1.Changes to the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960 must be notified and laid before Parliament under Section 28 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950.
2.Once laid before Parliament, rule changes under the Representation of the People Act, 1950 cannot be modified by Parliament, similar to Delimitation Commission orders.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Which of the following statements correctly describes the legal design of electoral roll preparation in India?
1.Electoral Registration Officers at the constituency level are responsible for preparing and revising electoral rolls.
2.The Election Commission of India directly manages every individual entry in the electoral database, with no role for constituency-level officers.
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Match List I (Legal Instrument) with List II (What It Primarily Governs) and select the correct answer using the codes given below:
List I
A.Registration of Electors Rules, 1960
B.Representation of the People Act, 1950
C.Representation of the People Act, 1951
D.Delimitation Act
List II
1.Conduct of elections and election-related disputes
2.Redrawing of constituency boundaries
3.Preparation and content of electoral rolls (procedural detail)
4.Qualification of voters and apportionment of seats
Consider the following statements about the Election Commission of India (ECI):
1.It is a three-member body comprising a Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners, appointed by the President.
2.It functions as a quasi-judicial body in disputes relating to recognition of political parties and allotment of symbols.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Who appoints the Chief Election Commissioner and the Election Commissioners of the Election Commission of India?
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