Learn bits
Polity & Governance
Mahesh

08/10/22 07:23 AM IST

One Candidate, One Consituentcy

In News 
  • Recently, the Chief Election Commissioner asked the Ministry of Law & Justice to limit the seats from which a candidate can contest to just one.
Background 
  • As per Section 33(7) of the RPA (Representation of the People Act), 1951, one candidate can contest from a maximum of two constituencies.
  • More constituencies were allowed until 1996 when the RPA was amended to set the cap at two constituencies.
  • Since 1951, many politicians have used this factor to contest from more than one seat – sometimes to divide the opponent’s vote, sometimes to profess their party’s power across the country, sometimes to cause a ripple effect in the region surrounding the constituencies in favour of the candidate’s party and all parties have exploited Section 33(7).
  • While 33(7) allows candidates to contest from two seats, Section 70 bars candidates from representing two constituencies in the Lok Sabha/state. Assembly.
Recommendations by ECI 
  • The Election Commission recommended amending Section 33(7) so as to allow one candidate to contest from only one seat.
  • It did so in 2004, 2010, 2016 and in 2018.
  • A system should be devised wherein if a candidate contested from two constituencies and won both, then he or she would bear the financial burden of conducting the subsequent by-election in one of the constituencies.
  • The amount would be Rs 5 lakh for a Vidhan Sabha election and Rs 10 lakh for a Lok Sabha election.
Source- Tribune 

More Related Current Affairs View All

22 Aug

Uttarakhand State Authority for Minority Education (USAME) Bill, 2025

'The Uttarakhand Assembly on Wednesday passed the Minority Education Bill, 2025, extending minority status benefits to institutions run by the Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Christian, and

Read More

22 Aug

India needs a national space law urgently

'A nation with a strong base in science and technology is a nation with a strong backbone” — these words of A.P.J. Abdul Kalam ring truer than before as India celebrate

Read More

22 Aug

Organ transplantation

'The National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) recently issued a direction stating that women patients and relatives of deceased donors will receive priority in org

Read More

India’s First Ai-Driven Magazine Generator

Generate Your Custom Current Affairs Magazine using our AI in just 3 steps