MISCELLANEOUSCentral
Section 21 of The Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952
- (1)The Central Government may, after consulting the Election Commission, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rulesfor carrying out the purposes of this Act.
- (2)In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:--
- (a)the maintenance of a list of members of the electoral college referred to in article 54 with their addresses corrected up to date for the purposes of Presidential elections;
- (b)the maintenance of a list of 1[members of the electoral college referred to in article 66] with their addresses corrected up to date for the purposes of Vice-Presidential elections;
- (c)the powers and duties of a Returning Officer and the performance by any officer appointed to assist the Returning Officer of any function of the Returning Officer; 2[(cc) the form and manner in which public notice under section 5 shall be given by the Returning Officer.]
- (d)the form and manner in which nominations may be made and the procedure to be followed in respect of the presentation of nomination papers;
- (e)the scrutiny of nominations and, in particular, the manner in which such scrutiny shall be conducted and the conditions and circumstances under which any person may be present or may enter objections thereat;
- (f)the publication of a list of valid nominations; 3[(g) the place and hours of polling, the manner in with votes are to be given both generally and in the case of illiterate voters or voters not conversant with the language in which ballot papers are printed or voter under physical or other disability and the procedure as to voting to be followed at elections;]
- (h)the scrutiny and counting of votes including cases in which a re-count of the votes may be made before the declaration of the result of the election;
- (i)the safe custody of ballot boxes, ballot papers and other election papers, the period for which such papers shall be preserved and the inspection and production of such papers;
- (j)any other matter required to be prescribed by this Act. 4[(3) Every rule made under this Act shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each House of Parliament while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid, both Houses agree in making any modification in the rule or both Houses agree that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form, or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule.]
Summary
- The Central Government has the authority to make rules for carrying out the purposes of this Act, after consulting with the Election Commission.
- These rules are published by notification in the Official Gazette (the official public journal of the government) and can cover specific matters including maintaining electoral college lists, powers of Returning Officers, and format of public notices under Section 5.
- They can also govern the forms, procedures, and conditions for nominations, scrutiny (meaning close examination) of papers, voting, and counting of votes.
- Every rule made under this Act must be laid (meaning formally presented) before each House of Parliament while in session for a total of thirty days.
- If both Houses of Parliament agree to modify or reject a rule within the specified session time, the rule will only have effect in that modified form or have no effect at all.
- Any modification or annulment (meaning cancellation) of a rule by Parliament does not affect the validity of anything previously done under that rule.
Practical examples
1In preparing for an upcoming Presidential election, the Central Government wants to update the rules for how illiterate voters cast their ballots. The government drafts the rule, consults the Election Commission, and publishes it in the Gazette. To make it final, the government presents the new rule to both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, where it lies for thirty days.
2The Central Government introduces a rule regarding the safe custody of ballot boxes. During the thirty-day review period, both Houses of Parliament agree to a modification requiring double-locking of the boxes. The rule immediately takes effect in this modified form, but all security actions taken under the original draft before the modification remain perfectly valid.
FAQ
1. Who has the power to make rules under Section 21?
The Central Government has the power to make rules after consulting with the Election Commission.
2. How long must a new rule be laid before Parliament for review?
A new rule must be laid before each House of Parliament for a total period of thirty days.
3. Can the thirty-day parliamentary review period span multiple sessions?
Yes, the thirty-day period can be completed in one session or across two or more successive sessions.
4. What happens if both Houses of Parliament agree to change or cancel a rule?
The rule will thereafter only have effect in the modified form or will have no effect at all, but this does not affect anything already done under the rule.
Test yourself
Q1.Under Section 21 of The Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952, whose consultation is mandatory before the Central Government can make rules under this Act?
Q2.Under Section 21 of The Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952, what is the total duration a newly made rule must be laid before each House of Parliament?
Q3.Under Section 21 of The Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952, which cross-references Section 5, which specific detail regarding the election notice can be prescribed through the rules?
Q4.Under Section 21 of The Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952, what happens to actions already taken under a rule if Parliament subsequently decides to modify or cancel that rule?