Government and election commission says that it seems double jump with NRI registering as voters

New Delhi: Latest report from Government and EC that in last three years there is increase in number of NRI registering them as ‘overseas electors’ two fold jump, however figure is far too less when compared to the number of Indians living abroad and entitled to vote here.

Issue of voting regarding NRIs voting in Indian election is again on hot plate debate topic with government moving the bill in Lok Sabha to extend proxy voting rights to them on the lines of service voters wile bill says the necessary provision of coming to India to cast ballot caused “hardship” to overseas electors. As of now, NRIs–essentially people living or working abroad who have not given up their Indian citizenship–can cast their vote in the constituencies they are registered in which means that they first have to register themselves as voters and then take a long flight to India be present on election day.

With hesitation to spend money and make travel plans to vote in India is reflected in that data available with the EC (election commission) and the government on ‘overseas electors’. Reports on May 2012 there were 1, 003, 7761 NRIs according to the multi-agency ‘committee for exploring the feasibility of alternative option for voting by overseas electors’.  However quoting electoral roll data of 2014, the committee said 11,846 people were registered as ‘overseas electors’– 11,140 of them men and only 706 women.

According to a Lok Sabha question answered in writing by Minister of State for Law P Chaudhary on December 15 in the ongoing Winter Session, a total of 24,348 people are ‘overseas electors’.  There is including 22,428 men and 1,920 women, though the chart has a column for transgenders which no one has registered.

Interestingly, out of 24,348 overseas voters, 23,556 are from Kerala. Thirty-seven are from Delhi. According to the provisions of ‘Representation of the People Act (Amendment) Bill, 2017’ introduced by Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad in the Lower House, overseas Indians who are entitled to vote in India can now appoint a proxy voter to cast their votes. The person authorized as proxy has to be a different person in every election. Source from PTI.