UPSC Articles
Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021
Part of: Prelims and GS II – Polity
Context The Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2021 that seeks to link electoral rolls to Aadhaar number has been listed for introduction in the Lok Sabha.
About the Bill
- The Bill allows electoral registration officers to ask for Aadhaar numbers of applicants wanting to register as voters to establish the identity of the applicant.
- It also seeks to allow the officers to ask for the number from “persons already included in the electoral roll.
- People who cannot furnish their Aadhaar numbers will be allowed to present other documents to establish identity.
Various amendments to Representation of People Act, 1950
- Section 23 will be amended to allow linking of the roll data with the Aadhaar ecosystem.
- Amendment to Section 14 will allow four “qualifying” dates for eligible people to register as voters. As of now, January 1 of every year is the sole qualifying date.
- Amendment to Section 20 and Section 60 will allow the elections to become gender-neutral for service voters.
