NEW DELHI:The Supreme Court on Friday issued notice to the Election Commission of India (ECI) on hearing a petition filed by motivational speaker Shiv Khera.
The petition seeks a direction that an election must be declared 'null and void' if the maximum votes from the constituency are polled for 'None of The Above' (NOTA), and a fresh election should be held for the constituency.
"After hearing from lawyer Gopal Sankaranarayanan, representing Khera, the bench led by CJI D Y Chandrachud stated, 'We will issue notice to the EC. This pertains to the electoral process. Let's hear from the Election Commission on this matter,' he said."
Sankaranarayanan cited the recent example from Surat, where no election was held as there was only one candidate, and all votes had to go to him by default. He pointed out that the unopposed BJP candidate won in Surat.
Khera, an author and activist, in his PIL filed before the Supreme Court, sought a direction to the respondent, the ECI, to frame rules stipulating that if NOTA receives a majority of votes, the election in the particular constituency shall be declared null and void, and a fresh election shall be conducted for the constituency.
According to sources in the Supreme Court and registry staff, the matter pertained to an election petition. Since elections are currently underway at various places across the country, the plea will likely be taken up for hearing within a week or so.
Khera sought that the ECI should frame rules regarding the aspect that candidates who receive fewer votes than NOTA shall be debarred from contesting all elections for a period of 5 years. Additionally, Khera urged the ECI to ensure proper and efficient reporting/publicity of NOTA as a "Fictional Candidate."
In his plea, Khera stated that he had approached the Supreme Court because the ECI has failed to recognize NOTA as a valid candidate, which is essential in a democratic form of governance. Khera argued that NOTA is not merely a citizen abstaining from voting but is actually a valid choice.
Khera said that it could be argued that while this Court had an idealistic approach in adopting NOTA in the electoral system, the State Election Commissions, utilizing their power under the Constitution of India, 1950, have turned that idealistic notion into reality. He advocated that what started with Panchayat and Municipal polls in four states should be uniformly implemented at all levels.
