Representation of People Act 1950
NRIs should be covered by Section 20(8) of the RP Act 1950, currently covering armed forces and paramilitary forces. This amendment to law has to be done by the Parliament of India and could be tagged on to the draft Representation of People Act Amendment Bill of 2006.
Section 20. Meaning of "ordinarily resident".
(1) A person shall not be deemed to be ordinarily resident in a constituency on the ground only that he owns, or is in possession of, a dwelling house therein.
=> One gets to vote where he lives (dwells) in his own house or rented house or simply where he sleeps.
(1A) A person absenting himself temporarily from his place of ordinary residence shall not by reason thereof cease to be ordinarily resident therein.
=> An ordinary voter looses vote if he stays outside of his constituency for more than two weeks.
(1B) A member of Parliament or of the Legislature of a State shall not during the term of his office cease to be ordinarily resident in the constituency in the electoral roll of which he is registered as an elector at the time of his election as such member, by reason of his absence from that constituency in connection with his duties as such member.]
=> M.P or M.L.A. can reside elsewhere based on his work.
(2) A person who is a patient in any establishment maintained wholly or mainly for the reception and treatment of persons suffering from mental illness or mental defectiveness, or who is detained in prison or other legal custody at any place, shall not by reason thereof be deemed to be ordinarily resident therein.
=> Mental patient or prisoner living in place will not get to vote in that place.
(3) Any person having a service qualification shall be deemed to be ordinarily resident on any date in the constituency in which, but for his having such service qualification, he would have been ordinarily resident on that date.
=> Service men in military or police can stay outside of their constituency without loosing vote.
(4) Any person holding any office in India declared by the President in consultation with the Election Commission to be an office to which the provisions of this sub-section apply, shall be deemed to be ordinarily resident on shall be deemed to be ordinarily resident on any date in the constituency in which, but for the holding of any such office, he would have been ordinarily resident on that date.
=> Officers appointed by president can live elsewhere while retaining their vote.
(5) The statement of any such person as is referred to in sub-section (3) or sub-section (4) made in the prescribed form and verified in the prescribed manner, that 3[but for his having the service qualification] or but for his holding any such office as is referred to in sub-section (4) he would have been ordinarily resident in a specified place on any date, shall, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, be 3[accepted as correct].
=> Service men and officers need to submit forms.
(6) The wife of any such person as is referred to in sub-section (3) or sub-section (4) shall if she be ordinarily residing with such person be deemed to be ordinarily resident on 7*** in the constituency specified by such person under subsection (5).
=> Wives of service men and officers keep their vote as well.
(7) If in any case a question arises as to where a person is ordinarily resident at any relevant time, the question shall be determined with reference to all the facts of the case and to such rules as may be made in this behalf by the Central Government in consultation with the Election Commission.
=> Central government and election commission make election rules.
(8) In sub-sections (3) and (5) "service qualification" means—
(a) being a member of the armed forces of the Union; or
(b) being a member of a force to which the provisions of the Army Act, 1950 (46 of 1950), have been made applicable whether with or without modifications; or
(c) being a member of an armed police force of a State, who is serving outside that State; or
(d) being a person who is employed under the Government of India, in a post outside India.
=> Service qualification means army personnel, police or government employees living outside county.
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