Elections in India -

Today is the forth phase of election in India and I will be voting today. This will phase see the voting from general public in Bihar, Haryana , Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, NCT Of Delhi.

Actually the monks where the first people to vote in India. It is one of the most extravagant event that comes after every five years (Normally).  In 1952, every Indian citizen above the age of 21 was granted the right to vote. Later it the voting age was changed to 18 years. So what is Election on India and how they are conducted.

Indian electoral system (Source – Wikipedia)

The Parliament of India comprises the head of state — the president — and the two Houses which are the legislature. The President of India is elected for a five-year term by an electoral college consisting of members of federal and state legislatures. Parliament of India has two chambers. The House of the People (Lok Sabha) has 545 members, 543 members elected for a five-year term in single-seat constituencies and two members appointed to represent the Anglo-Indian community.(as envisaged by the Constitution of India, as of now the members of Lok Sabha are 545, out of which 543 are elected for 5-year term and 2 members represent the Anglo-Indian community). The two unelected members are a relic from the past. The 550 members are elected under the plurality ('first past the post') electoral system.

Council of States (Rajya Sabha) has 245 members, 233 members elected for a six-year term, with one-third retiring every two years. The members are elected by legislators of the state and union (federal) territories. The elected members are chosen under the system of proportional representation by means of the Single Transferable Vote. The twelve nominated members are usually an eclectic mix of eminent artists (including actors), scientists, jurists, sportspersons, businessmen and journalists and common people.

An election is a decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold formal office.

Since independence, elections in India have evolved a long way, but all along elections have been a significant cultural aspect of independent India.

In 2004, Indian elections covered an electorate larger than 670 million people—over twice that of the next largest, the European Parliament elections—and declared expenditure has trebled since 1989 to almost $300 million, using more than 1 million electronic voting machines.

The size of the huge electorate mandates that elections be conducted in a number of phases (there were four phases in 2009 General Elections). It involves a number of step-by-step processes from announcement of election dates by the Election Commission of India, which brings into force the 'model code of conduct' for the political parties, to the announcement of results and submission of the list of successful candidates to the executive head of the state or the centre. The submission of results marks the end of the election process, thereby paving way for the formation of the new government.

Happy Voting.