RIGHT TO REJECT

• In a judgment that can catalyze an electoral revolution, the Supreme Court has directed the Election Commission to give the voter the right to reject all the contesting candidates if he finds none of them “worthy of his vote,” thereby, forcing political parties to field only those “who are known for their integrity” and ensuring “proper governance of the country.”
• A bench headed by Chief Justice P Sathasivam said that negative voting would foster purity and vibrancy of elections and ensure wide participation as people who are not satisfied with the candidates in the fray would also turn up to express their opinion rejecting contestants.
• The bench noted that the concept of negative voting is prevalent in 13 countries and even in India; parliamentarians are given an option to press the button for abstaining while voting takes place in the House.
• The court said right to reject candidates in elections is part of fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression given by the Constitution to Indian citizens.

 NOTA BUTTON:

• The SC said the voter could be facilitated to cast his negative vote by providing one more button on the electronic voting machine (EVM) called "None of the Above" (NOTA)
• The EC could implement the order in a phased manner or at one go

 SECTION 49 (O):

• The Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, already gives Indians the right to not vote for any candidate, through Section 49 (O).
• Under this section, used by a minuscule number of well-informed voters, voters can have their finger inked, and then tell the presiding officer that he/she does not wish to vote for any of the candidates and this is then recorded in a register. This implies that a voter declares openly that he is rejecting the candidates.
• The SC decision provides to citizens the right to a secret ballot even while exercising his right to reject all the candidates.
• Pressure on political parties to field meritorious candidates is always welcome, but merely introducing the right to reject would hardly suffice on its own. If the number of those who select the None Of The Above option exceeds the number of those who voted for any candidate, a candidate with a minor fraction of votes polled could still emerge victorious. An amendment in law would be required.