Gujrat To Become First State To Introduce Compulsory Voting

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Gujarat is all set to become first State in India to make voting compulsory as Chief Minister Anandiben Patel on Thursday indicated that the State Government is in the process of notifying rules for compulsory voting bill.According to Patel, most probably compulsory voting will be introduce in upcoming local body polls of 253 municipalities, 208 taluka (tehsil) panchayat, 26 district panchayat and six municipal corporations to be held by October this year.

The State Government has made all the necessary arrangements to implement compulsory voting and rules are being formed, especially for those who would not able to cast their votes, she said to reports in Rajkot on the sidelines of a function, adding that her Government has given orders for more numbers of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) to accommodate all the voters.

Already voters’ turnout in the local body polls remains around 70 per cent in the State and if compulsory voting rule would be implemented it could definitely cross 90 per cent mark, which would require more EVMs and manpower to conduct the elections peacefully, he added. In the case of six Municipal Corporation’s elections, each voter would have to be given more time to choose four representatives compared to three during the past polls.The State Election Commission will also have to increase the number of booths if the compulsory voting rule comes into force to lessen the waiting period for the voters to cast their votes.

Gujarat became the first State in the country to pass Compulsory Voting Bill in the Assembly. Last year, the Gujarat Governor had given his approval to the Gujarat Local Authorities Laws (Amendment) Bill 2011, which makes voting mandatory in civic polls and has a provision of punishment amid strong protest from the Opposition Congress. Subsequently, the State Government constituted a committee to seek citizens’ opinion on the Bill. The committee headed by former IAS officer KC Kapoor, has recently submitted its report.

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Gujarat is all set to become first State in India to make voting compulsory as Chief Minister Anandiben Patel on Thursday indicated that the State Government is in the process of notifying rules for compulsory voting bill.According to Patel, most probably compulsory voting will be introduce in upcoming local body polls of 253 municipalities, 208 taluka (tehsil) panchayat, 26 district panchayat and six municipal corporations to be held by October this year.

The State Government has made all the necessary arrangements to implement compulsory voting and rules are being formed, especially for those who would not able to cast their votes, she said to reports in Rajkot on the sidelines of a function, adding that her Government has given orders for more numbers of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) to accommodate all the voters.

Already voters’ turnout in the local body polls remains around 70 per cent in the State and if compulsory voting rule would be implemented it could definitely cross 90 per cent mark, which would require more EVMs and manpower to conduct the elections peacefully, he added. In the case of six Municipal Corporation’s elections, each voter would have to be given more time to choose four representatives compared to three during the past polls.The State Election Commission will also have to increase the number of booths if the compulsory voting rule comes into force to lessen the waiting period for the voters to cast their votes.

Gujarat became the first State in the country to pass Compulsory Voting Bill in the Assembly. Last year, the Gujarat Governor had given his approval to the Gujarat Local Authorities Laws (Amendment) Bill 2011, which makes voting mandatory in civic polls and has a provision of punishment amid strong protest from the Opposition Congress. Subsequently, the State Government constituted a committee to seek citizens’ opinion on the Bill. The committee headed by former IAS officer KC Kapoor, has recently submitted its report.