Structure of the Election Commission of India

Universal Adult Franchise

Universal adult franchise (also known as universal suffrage, common suffrage, and general suffrage) is the right to vote, of all adult citizens, irrespective of their gender, race, social status, wealth, political stance, or any such criteria, with a few exceptions....

Right to Contest Elections

Indian Constitution has given the Right to Contest Election to all citizens. It has no restrictions on religion, race, caste, sex, income, education, class or gender. A candidate must be at least 25 years old to stand in the Lok Sabha or Assembly election. It has some legal restrictions like a person who has undergone imprisonment for two or more years for some offense is disqualified from contesting elections....

Election Commission of India

The Election Commission of India is an autonomous constitutional authority responsible for administering Union and State election processes in India. The body administers elections to the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, State Legislative Assemblies in India, and the offices of the President and Vice President in the country. The Election Commission of India plays a pivotal role in conducting, supervising and ensuring a free and fair election system....

Independent Election Commission

The Election Commission of India, established under Article 324 of the Indian Constitution, plays a crucial role in supervising and conducting elections in the country. It is an independent body responsible for overseeing various aspects of the electoral process, ensuring fairness, and maintaining the integrity of elections....

Constitutional Provision for Election Commission of India

Article 324 provides for an independent Election Commission for the ‘superintendence, direction and control of the electoral roll and the conduct of elections in India. The Election Commission of India plays a decisive role in all aspects related to elections. There is a State Election Commission for every state, they have a responsibility for conducting local body elections at Panchayat and Municipalities of the state....

Structure of the Election Commission of India

The Election Commission of India originally had only a Chief Election Commissioner. In 1993, two more Election Commissioners were appointed. This made the commission a multi-member body. Now there is a Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioner and decisions are taken by majority vote....

Election Commissioner – Appointment, Tenure and Removal

The President of India appoints the Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners. An Election Commissioner is appointed for a term of 6 years or till he attains the age of 65 years. The Chief Election Commission and the two Election Commissioners have similar powers to take all decisions relating to elections as a collective body The Chief Election Commissioner can be removed from his office by Parliament with a two-thirds majority in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha only on grounds of proved misbehavior or incapacity. Other Election Commissioners can be removed by the President on the recommendation of the Chief Election Commissioner....

Functions of the Election Commission of India

To conduct free, fair, and peaceful elections, the following functions are undertaken by the Election Commission of India....

Independence of Election Commission of India

Article 324 of the Constitution has established provisions to safeguard and ensure the independent and impartial functioning of the Election Commission....

Challenges to free and fair elections

Money power: Candidates and parties with a lot of money may not be sure of their victory but they do enjoy a big and unfair advantage over smaller parties and independents. Criminal background: In some parts of the country, candidates with criminal connections have been able to push others out of the electoral race and to secure a ‘ticket’ from major parties. Family politics: Some families tend to dominate political parties and tickets are distributed to relatives from these families. Lack of choice: Very often elections offer little choice to ordinary citizens as the major parties are quite similar to each other in terms of policies and practice. Smaller parties and independent candidates suffer a huge disadvantage compared to bigger parties....

Free and Fair Election – FAQs

Who conducts the free and fair elections in India?...