Exercise your right to not vote

On Wednesday, February 18, 2009, post-graduate students pursuing their Masters in Communication and Journalism (MCJ) from Mumbai University’s Department of Communication and Journalism held a guest lecture at Sophia College, Mumbai, which was attended by the students of Bachelor of Mass Media (B.M.M.). They spoke about their initiative, ‘Democracy Works’, which makes people aware of Rule 49-O of the Conduct of Indian Election Commission Rules, 1961. Also covering the event was news channel ____.

According to Rule 49-O, a registered voter can exercise his/her right not to vote for any candidate during elections. With the elections around the corner, this session was made all the more important. One of the speakers, Rahul Dubey, a post-graduate student of Journalism at the University of Mumbai, said, “If a voter thinks that the contesting candidates are not worthy of the vote, a ‘No Vote’ can be cast by signing form 17-A on the day of polling.”

Mr. Dubey, along with Mr. _______, who is a ________, explained to the students that this movement to make people aware of their right to cast a no vote was mainly for those individuals who are registered voters, but who do not vote during elections because they believe that none of the candidates deserve to win. This step, then, is a way to ensure ‘one less excuse not to cast a vote’.

The procedure to cast a No Vote is simple. On the day of the elections, voters must go to their respective voting centres, confirm their identity, and sign the register. They must then ask the presiding officer to give them form 17-A, where they must sign, as must the presiding officer. They must not press any buttons on the Electronic Voting Machine (EVM). This will be considered as a No Vote.

While speaking of the empowerment provided to citizens through Rule 49-O, Mr. _____ also pointed out the loopholes which may be a hindrance to the implementation of the rule. He explained by giving a hypothetical situation in which ‘X’ candidate and ‘Y’ candidate contest the elections. If, in such a situation, 70,000 votes are No Votes, followed by 65,000 and 60,000 votes for ‘X’ and ‘Y’ respectively, and ‘X’ were to be declared the winner, ‘Y’ could file a case stating that since 70,000 people voted against ‘X’, the latter can not be elected. In such a case scenario, there would have to be re-polls. To counter this, a student asked what would happen if there were re-polls; would the same people contest, thus leading to re-polls, resulting in an endless cycle? To this, Mr. _____replied that these were hypothetical assumptions which might not take place.

Another point brought to light was that in smaller constituencies, the people who cast a no vote might be known, which could endanger their safety. This, too, needs to be kept in mind and addressed.

In order to inform as many people as possible about ‘Democracy Works’, the students of MCJ, besides speaking with college students, are also trying to spread the message through the mass media, e-mails, SMSes, and word of mouth. After all, as Rahul Dubey said, “We have forgotten our fundamental right to vote, which is exercised even when we cast a No Vote.” And the time to begin exercising it is now.