NEW DELHI, Aug 14:
At least two Lok Sabha members will be given postal ballots to exercise their franchise in the September 9 Vice Presidential election to fill the vacancy created by the surprise resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar from the post last month.
According to the rules for the vice presidential election, only voters who are under preventive detention are eligible to exercising their franchise in the vice presidential election through postal ballots.
Two Lok Sabha members — Sheikh Abdul Rashid (Baramulla) and Amritpal Singh (Khadoor Sahib) — have been lodged in different jails and will be eligible to cast their votes in the vice presidential election.
According to the procedure, the government concerned will intimate the name and place of detention and other relevant particulars of the Member of Parliament to the Election Commission which will send the postal ballot paper to the elector concerned, officials said.
All other voters will have to cast their votes at Parliament House, where a polling booth will be set up on September 9.
According to the rules, no voter can cast his or her vote through a proxy and an illiterate or a disabled voter can take the help of the presiding officer to record his vote.
The notification for the vice presidential election was issued on August 7 and August 21 is the last date for filing of nomination papers.
The ruling NDA and the opposition INDIA bloc are yet to announce their candidates for the vice presidential elections.
The leaders of the NDA constituents have authorised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP President J P Nadda to decide on the candidate of the ruling coalition for the vice presidential election.
“The two Lok Sabha members are under detention and not convicted, hence both are eligible to cast their vote in the vice presidential election,” P D T Achary, former secretary general of the Lok Sabha said.
Rashid is facing trial in a terror-financing case and lodged in Tihar jail, while Singh is under detention under the National Security Act and lodged in a Dibrugarh jail.
The members of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, including nominated members, comprise the electoral college for the vice presidential election.
The effective strength of the electoral college is 781, with the ruling NDA having a comfortable edge with the support of at least 422 members.
Party whips do not apply in the vice presidential elections which are held through casting of secret ballots. (PTI)
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