Theme: Voting & Elections

It is possible to remove a voter from the electoral list. The Electoral Registration Officer issues a notice with the draft of the names of the voters, so that you can object to any of the names. This list is also sent to all the political parties and will be displayed on the website of the Chief Electoral Officer, notice board of Electoral Registration Officer and polling stations.

Filing an Objection

If you want to inform the Electoral Registration Officer or the Booth Level Officer that a voter you know is not eligible to be on the electoral list of that constituency for any reason, such as change of address or death of voter etc, you will have to file an objection by filling Form 7. By filling this form, you are: Preventing any person’s name from being included in the electoral roll or Requesting to delete someone’s name from the electoral roll. For example, if someone you know has died or has registered twice as a voter in two different places, then you can fill in these details in Form 7.^{(( Form 7, Election Commission of India, available at https://eci.gov.in/files/file/4830-form-7-application-for-objecting-inclusion-of-name-in-electoral-roll-or-seeking-deletion-of-name-from-electoral-roll/.))} You can get a hardcopy of the form 7 by visiting the Electoral Registration Officer of your constituency or download it or you fill it online.

Time Limit

You will have 30 days from the date of publication of the notice to file your objection by filling Form 7. The objection can be made by you alone or on behalf of your family members. Multiple objections on behalf of other people cannot be filed by you. ^{(( Rule 12, Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961))}

Submitting the Form

When you submit the form to the Electoral Registration Officer either in person, by post or online, the officer will give you an acknowledgement for it only if: The Form is signed or there is a thumb impression The Form includes the name of the person filing the objection None of the information required in the Form is should be left blank and things like “not known” are not should not be written in the form. Decision of the Electoral Registration Officer The Electoral Registration Officer will look at the applications and if he thinks that the objection made by you is valid, then he will allow it. But if he requires more information, then he will hold an enquiry before making a decision. He may ask you to appear in person or give any evidence to prove the details of the objection made by you.

You are a service voter  if you are currently a^{(( Service Voters Portal, Election Commission of India, available at http://servicevoter.nic.in/))}:

• Member of Armed Forces – Army, Navy and Air Force.
• Member of Assam Rifles, Central Reserve Police Force, Border Security Force, Seema Sashastra Bal, Indo-Tibetan Border Police, Central Industrial Security Force, General Engineering Reserve Force and Border Roads Organisation under Border Roads Development Board.
• Member of Armed police force of a state, who are serving outside of that state.
• Person who is employed by the Government of India in a post outside India, like those working for Embassies and High Commissions outside India.
• Wife of someone in any of the above

Upon leaving or retiring from any of these services, you will no longer be considered a service voter.

You can register your name as a service voter in the electoral roll of your home constituency, i.e. where your permanent residence is. You also have the option to register as a general voter at the place you are posted at, like a military cantonment area, but subject to the following conditions^{(( Service Voter Brochure, Ministry of External Affairs available at https://mea.gov.in/Images/pdf/service-voter-brochure.pdf))}:

• You must be residing at the place of posting with your family for a sufficient amount of time, or
• You are on a tenure posting of 3 years or more in that place of posting.

You can only be registered in one place/constituency at a time. So, while you are filing the application form, you will have to make a declaration confirming that you are not registered in any other constituency electoral roll.

How to Register

If you are a service voter or a wife of a service voter, then you have to follow these steps to register to vote:

Step 1

Fill 2 copies of the relevant application form of the category of service you belong to.

• Armed Forces (Form 2)
• Armed Police (Form 2A)
• Diplomats/Officials working in Embassies and Missions (Form 3)

Step 2

Submit it to the Record Office or Nodal Officer of the place/constituency you are applying from, along with the required documents.

Once you have received your ballot papers, follow the steps mentioned below to cast your vote as a service voter^{(( Service Electors FAQ, Election Commission of India, available at https://eci.gov.in/faqs/voter-electors/service-voter/faqs-service-electors-r13/))}:

Step 1

• Put a tick mark (✓) or cross mark (x) next to the name of the candidate you want to vote for.
• You must not write or mark anything on the ballot paper that would reveal your identity.

Step 2

• Fill Form 13A declaring that you have cast your postal ballot. Attest it by a notary/stipendiary magistrate or the commanding officer of your unit, ship or establishment (depending upon which wing of the armed forces you are from).
• If you are a government official serving abroad, you must get it attested by the diplomatic or consular representative of India at the country where you are posted.

Step 3

• Note down the serial number of your ballot paper on the Form 13B cover and Place your marked ballot paper inside it and seal it according to the instructions.

Step 4

• Put your duly filled and sealed Form 13A and Form 13B in the envelope provided (Form 13C). The envelope will already be addressed to your Returning Officer.
• You do not need to affix any postal stamp on your envelope.
• If you are a government official casting your postal ballot then you can send it either by airmail or as a diplomatic package.
• Post it by the time and date timelines mentioned.

If you send it after the fixed time, your vote will not be counted.

If you are registered as a service voter in your home constituency, i.e. constituency where your permanent residence is, and you are posted elsewhere when the elections are announced, the Returning Officer of your home constituency will send you and your wife postal ballots.

The Returning officer will send you the following forms/papers for you to cast your vote:

• A postal ballot paper (with your electoral roll number and the initials ‘PB’ written on the backside of the form by the Returning Officer)
• Form 13A, i.e. a declaration saying that you have casted your vote.
• Form 13B i.e. a cover for placing your marked ballot paper
• Form 13C i.e. a cover with your duly filled Form 13A and Form 13B addressed to the Returning Officer
• Form 13D i.e. a copy of the instructions explaining how to cast your vote along with time and date by which you should send the ballots back)

If the postal ballot is received by the Returning Officer as undelivered, he will send it to you again by post. You can even ask the Returning Officer to have the postal ballot delivered to you personally.

If for some reason your postal ballot gets damaged and you cannot cast your vote through it, you can ask your Returning Officer to send you a second set of ballot papers and return the spoiled ones back to him. Only if the Returning Officer is satisfied that they are indeed spoiled, he will send you a second set.

To reduce the time of sending ballot papers, the Election Commission has set up an ETPB method – Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballots. By using ETPB, the Returning Officer can send you the ballot papers electronically and you can download the same using an OTP (One Time Pin) generated specifically for you. Once you have entered your OTP, you can download your forms accordingly. For further information, please refer to the Election Commission’s Service Voter Portal. ^{(( ETPBS & Service Voter, Election Commission of India, available at https://eci.gov.in/divisions-of-eci/it-applications-etpbs-servicevoter/))}

Once you have received your ballot papers, follow the steps mentioned below to cast your vote:

Step 1

In order to cast your vote on the postal ballot you must either out a tick mark (✓) or cross mark (x) next to the name of the candidate you want to vote for. But you must not write or mark anything on the ballot paper that would reveal your identity.

Step 2

Fill in Form 13A declaring that you have casted your postal ballot and get it attested by a notary/stipendiary magistrate or the commanding officer of your unit, ship or establishment (depending upon which wing of the armed forces you are from). If you are a government official serving abroad, you must get it attested by the diplomatic or consular representative of India at the country where you are posted.

Step 3

After marking your vote and getting your declaration attested, note down the serial number of your ballot paper on the Form 13B cover and place your marked ballot paper inside it and seal it.

Step 4

Take the sealed Form 13B and your Form 13A declaration and put it in an envelope (Form 13C) addressed to your Returning Officer and post it by the time and date mentioned accordingly. You do not need to affix any postal stamp on your envelope. If you send it after the fixed time, your vote will not be counted. If you are a government official casting your postal ballot then you can send it either by airmail or as a diplomatic package.

If you are a service voter belonging to either of the following two categories, then you have an option to vote through a proxy at your home constituency^{(( Service Electors FAQ, Election Commission of India, available at https://eci.gov.in/faqs/voter-electors/service-voter/faqs-service-electors-r13/))}:

• Armed forces of the Union
• Assam Rifles, Central Reserve Police Force, Border Security Force, Seema Sashastra Bal, Indo-Tibetan Border Police, Central Industrial Security Force, General Engineering Reserve Force and Border Roads Organisation under Border Roads Development Board

If you choose this option to vote, you will be recognised as a ‘Classified Service Voter’ (CSV).

This option is NOT available to armed police forces of a State or government officials and diplomats serving abroad.

You can appoint any person living in your home constituency as your proxy if they are:

• Someone who has been living in that constituency for some time and is a citizen of India
• Above 18 years of age
• Not banned from registering as a voter on the electoral roll of that constituency.

How to Appoint a Proxy^{(( Service Electors FAQ, Election Commission of India, available at https://eci.gov.in/faqs/voter-electors/service-voter/faqs-service-electors-r13/))}

Sign a duly filled Form 13F before your commanding officer of your unit, ship or establishment and send it to the person who you are appointing as proxy. The proxy will have to sign the form in front of a notary or a First Class Magistrate and submit it to the Returning Officer at your constituency. If you are at your home constituency, both you and your proxy can sign Form 13F before a notary or a First Class Magistrate.

You can exercise this option of voting through proxy only till you remain a service voter.

Once appointed, they will continue to be your proxy till you revoke their appointment, or till they die. If you wish to revoke this to back to voting through postal ballots, you must fill Form 13G and send it to your Returning Officer. As soon as he receives the duly filled form, the proxy will be revoked.

How to vote through proxy^{(( Service Electors FAQ, Election Commission of India, available at https://eci.gov.in/faqs/voter-electors/service-voter/faqs-service-electors-r13/))}

Your proxy will cast your vote at the polling station, by following the standard procedure set for general voters. This vote that your proxy will cast will be in addition to the one they may cast in their own name. For the vote that the proxy casts for you, the indelible ink marking will be made on the middle finger of their left hand.

None of the Above (NOTA) is an option which is given to the voters while casting their vote. It allows the voters to not choose any of the listed candidates. The Electronic Voting Machines have the NOTA option at the end of the list of candidates.

 

There are options of reporting and complaining during elections. If you have any complaints due to lack of action etc. by authorities, there are many ways to contact the election authorities:

Going to the Officer

You can send a letter to the Electoral Regional Officer, Chief Election Officer or the District Election Officer and file a complaint. You can find out where the offices are here.

Online Websites

The National Grievances Service by the Election Commission is a website where you can file all complaints, suggestions or give information.

Email

If you are an Indian Citizen, then you can send an email to complaints@eci.gov.in and if you are an overseas elector then you can send an email to overseas.elector@eci.gov.in. You can send an email regarding any suggestions or complaints and request any information.

Mobile Applications

If you are an Android Smartphone user, then go to the play store and download the Voter Helpline App. You can lodge your complaint by using the mobile app. To understand more about the application look the C-Vigil Manual.

By Post

You can send a letter to the Electoral Regional Officer, Chief Election Officer or the District Election Officer and file a complaint. You can find out where the offices are here.

The National, State and District Contact Centre Toll-Free number is 1950 and is operational between 8 am to 8 pm, both in Hindi and English. An agent will ask you for information regarding your name, mobile number and email ID and then you can ask for help regarding any issue. You can :

• Ask for any information that you require about voting or voter ID card
• File a complaint over the phone which they will register and they will give you the complaint ID Number over the phone which you can note down. You can use this number to follow up your complaint.
• Ask for any suggestions or feedback regarding any issue that you face or know of.

You can even contact the Chief Electoral Officer of your area to get more information or help to navigate through the processes. The number for the CEO at Delhi is 1800111400. There is also a Voter Helpline App you can use. Read more about it here.