Why the nomination process needs reform?

For Preliminary Examination:  Current events of national and international Significance like India’s electoral nomination process

For Mains Examination: GS II - Indian Polity

Context:

A young woman from Dadra and Nagar Haveli called last week about the recent municipal council elections. This is a district in which I once served as Collector and Returning Officer. Her father’s nomination for municipal councillor had been rejected with no hearing or chance at verification. She asked, “Sir, is this how elections work?” The honest answer is yes. And that is the problem.

Read about:

Representation of the People Act (RP), 1951

Election Commission of India

Key takeaways:

Representation of the People Act, 1951 (RPA 1951)

The Representation of the People Act, 1951 (RPA 1951) is one of the most important laws governing India’s democratic process. While the Constitution of India lays down the broad framework for elections—such as the establishment of the Election Commission and universal adult franchise—the RPA 1951 provides the detailed legal machinery to conduct free and fair elections to Parliament and State Legislatures.

Background and Purpose

• After India became a Republic in 1950, there was an urgent need to frame a comprehensive law that would regulate how elections were to be conducted in a democratic setup.
• While the Representation of the People Act, 1950 dealt mainly with the preparation of electoral rolls and allocation of seats, the 1951 Act went further. It laid down how elections are actually conducted, who can contest, what counts as corrupt or illegal practices, and how disputes are settled.
• Thus, the RPA 1951 acts as the backbone of India’s electoral system, ensuring that elections are not only regular and universal but also ethical, transparent, and legally accountable

Conduct of Elections

• The Act authorizes the Election Commission of India (ECI) to supervise, direct, and control elections to both Parliament and State Legislatures. It lays down procedures for notification of elections, nominations of candidates, scrutiny of nomination papers, withdrawal of candidatures, polling process, and counting of votes.
  It also provides for re-polls in case of irregularities or disturbances

Qualification and Disqualification of Candidates

The Act elaborates on who can contest elections. A person must be a citizen of India, must meet the minimum age requirement (25 years for Lok Sabha and State Assemblies, 30 years for Rajya Sabha and Legislative Councils), and must be an elector in the constituency concerned.
It also lists several grounds for disqualification, such as:

• Holding an office of profit under the government,

• Being of unsound mind or insolvent,<