Vice President of India election Process and Final Result

With the tenure of Vice-President Mohammad Hamid Ansari coming to an end on August 10, if necessary, election for the post will be conducted on August 5.

Announcing the schedule on Thursday, the Election Commission said a notification to this effect would be issued on July 4. Contestants can file nominations till July 18, while the last date for the withdrawal of candidatures is July 21. The counting will be done on August 5.

“An election to fill the vacancy to be caused by the expiration of the term of office of the outgoing Vice-President needs to be completed before the expiration of the term of the present incumbent. The law provides that the notification for election may be issued on, or as soon as conveniently may be after, the 60th day before the expiry of term of the office of the outgoing Vice-President,” said Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi.

The Vice-President is elected by the Electoral College consisting of members of both the Houses of Parliament in accordance with the system of proportional representation, by means of single transferable vote. The nominated members of Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha are also eligible to participate in the election.

The Electoral College currently consists of 233 Rajya Sabha and 543 Lok Sabha members, besides two nominated members.

Dr. Zaidi said the Commission, in consultation with the Central government, has decided to appoint Secretary General to Rajya Sabha as Returning Officer for the poll. Assistant Returning Officers from among Rajya Sabha Secretariat officials would be appointed to assist the Returning Officer.

The nomination paper of a candidate has to be subscribed by at least 20 electors as proposers and at least another 20 electors as seconders. An elector can subscribe to only one nomination paper as either a proposer or seconder

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As the counting of votes to elect the 15th Vice-President of India ended, it emerged that M. Venkaiah Naidu, with 516 votes, had polled the highest number of votes for a vice-presidential candidate in 33 years.

In an election where 14 MPs eligible to vote failed to exercise their franchise, affecting the Opposition UPA the most, Mr. Naidu’s tally of votes also pointed to some amount of cross-voting in his favour.

The NDA polled 522 votes among MPs in the presidential polls last month. Of this number, 40 MPs, from the Biju Janata Dal and the Janata Dal (U) decided to shift their votes from the NDA to the Opposition candidate for the vice-presidential polls. That brought down the expected support base of the NDA candidate from 522 to 482.

However, during the presidential polls, 17 NDA MPs polled invalid votes. This time round, the number was down to 4, which led to an addition of 13 votes, taking the figure to 495. Added to this were 10 nominated members, most of whom were expected to vote for Mr Naidu. “Even so, we have got at least 17 unexpected votes from those who promised these to the Opposition,” a senior BJP leader said.

Party general secretary Bhupendra Yadav, in charge of the polls for the party and Mr. Naidu’s election agent, said that “it was because of meticulous planning and the determination of Prime Minister Modi that we were able to get all our MPs (except two who are ill in hospital) to vote.”

According to sources, two BJP MPs - Union Minister for Sports Vijay Goel and Rajasthan MP Sanwarlal Jat - could not make it to the polls because they were ill.

Indian Union Muslim League’s P. K. Kunhalikutty and Abdul Wahab turned up to vote at room number 63 of Parliament, but they could come only after the proceedings had been wrapped up. The two MPs said that their flight from Kerala had been inordinately delayed because of which they could not cast their vote.

Of the others who were missing, Trinamool Congress (TMC) had the largest block of absentees - MPs Kunal Ghosh, Pratima Mandal, Abhishek Banerjee and Tapas Pal did not vote. While Mr. Ghosh has been suspended from the party and the TMC had no comment to offer on his absence, Mr. Banerjee is in Hyderabad for an eye surgery and Ms. Mandal too pleaded a family emergency. Mr. Pal has been in jail and had been unable to arrange for any reprieve that would allow him to vote.

Two Congress MPs, Mausam Noor and Rani Nara, also did not vote, and there were no reasons offered on behalf of the Congress for their absence. “We will go into the reasons why the members could not make it,” leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said.

Anbumani Ramadoss of the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), Udayan Raje Bhonsale of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Naba Kumar Sarania (independent MP from Kokrajhar in Assam), and Anu Agha (nominated member) were also absent.

Election to Vice President of India

The term of office of Shri Mohd. Hamid Ansari, Vice-President of India, is up to 10th August 2017. An election to fill the vacancy to be caused by the expiration of the term of office of the outgoing Vice-President needs to be completed before the expiration of the term of the present incumbent. The law provides that the notification for election may be issued on, or as soon as conveniently may be after, the sixtieth day before the expiry of term of the office of the outgoing Vice-President. 2. Article 324 of the Constitution read with the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952 and the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Rules, 1974, vests the superintendence, direction and control of the conduct of election to the office of the Vice-President of India in the Election Commission of India. The Election Commission is mandated to ensure that the election to the office of the Vice-President of India must be a free and fair election. The Commission is taking all necessary steps for discharging the responsibility. 3. The Vice-President is elected by the members of the Electoral College consisting of the members of both Houses of Parliament in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote. The nominated Members of Rajya Sabha as well as of Lok Sabha are also eligible to be included in the Electoral College and, therefore, are entitled to participate in the election

4. The Electoral College for the present election of the Vice-President consists of the following members: Rajya Sabha: Elected = 233 Nominated = 12 a) Lok Sabha: Elected = 543 Nominated = 2 TOTAL = 790 5. The Election Commission, in consultation with the Central Government, has decided to appoint the Secretary General to the Rajya Sabha as the Returning Officer for the election. The Commission has also decided to appoint Assistant Returning Officers from amongst the officers of the Rajya Sabha Secretariat to assist the Returning Officer. 6. In pursuance of sub-section (1) of section (4) of the Presidential and VicePresidential Elections Act, 1952, the Election Commission of India has fixed the programme for the election to fill the office of the Vice-President of India as per the annexure. 7. The nomination paper of a candidate must be delivered to the Returning Officer at New Delhi at the place to be specified by him by a public notice either by the candidate or by any of his proposers or seconders between 11.00 a.m. and 3.00 p.m. A nomination paper of a candidate has to be subscribed by at least twenty electors as proposers and at least another twenty electors as seconders. An elector can subscribe to only one nomination paper of a candidate as either a proposer or seconder. The security deposit for the election is Rs. 15,000/- (Rupees fifteen thousand only), which is required to be made along with the nomination paper.

NOTA

Sub: Provision for `None of the Above’ option on ballot paper for elections to Rajya Sabha. The Hon’ble Supreme Court, in their judgment dated 27-09-2013 in WP (c) No. 161 of 2004, inter alia, directed that the option of `None of the Above’ (NOTA) shall be provided on the ballot papers/EVMs. In pursuance of this direction, the Commission issued instructions on 11th October, 2013 for providing NOTA option on the ballot after the name of the last candidate. Later, in January, 2014, the Commission issued directions that the provision of NOTA shall also be applicable in the elections to Rajya Sabha, and issued instructions to this effect vide circular letter dated 24th January, 2014. Immediately thereafter biennial elections to the Rajya Sabha were held in 16 States. Poll was taken on 7th February, 2014 where elections were contested. Instructions regarding NOTA option were applicable in these elections onwards. 2. On 27th February, 2014, while extending the NOTA option to Legislative Council elections, further instructions were issued regarding the manner of marking vote with NOTA option on the ballot paper. Later, on 12th November, 2015, more detailed instructions were issued regarding the manner of voting including opting of NOTA option with illustrative examples. 3. From January, 2014, biennial elections to Rajya Sabha covering all States and 25 bye-elections to Rajya Sabha have been held. A list of States where biennial elections to Rajya Sabha have been held from 2014 onwards is attached.