A parliamentary panel on Jan. 17 brought into question the credibility of proxy voting for Non-Resident Indians as it could leave room for malpractices. The panel said that an option of using technology or postal ballots could be explored instead.
A Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs headed by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor was briefed on the “Voting Rights to NRIs” by officials, during which the members raised concerns over the proposal to allow proxy voting for NRIs. The members expressed fears that it could lead to malpractices, and advocated consideration of the use of technology and a mechanism for online voting, PTI reported.
Among the suggestions made at the meeting was one involving setting up of polling booths at Indian embassies and consulates across the world to enable NRIs to cast their vote. The committee asked the officials about the practices other countries follow to enable exercising of franchise by their non-resident citizens.
The government had, in August, cleared a proposal to extend proxy voting to NRIs with amendment of the Representation of the People Act.
Proxy voting, which is availed only by service personnel so far, will be extended to NRIs in the constituencies where they are registered, according to the proposal. However, unlike the case of the service personnel, who can declare a relative as a permanent nominee for casting vote on their behalf, NRIs will not be able to nominate one proxy for all elections. They will have to declare a nominee who will vote on their behalf each time an election is held.
The Election Commission started considering the issue of allowing NRIs to cast their vote from abroad in 2014. In 2015, an expert committee in the Election Commission that studied the issue submitted guidelines to the Law Ministry for amendment of electoral laws to allow proxy voting for NRIs.