Supreme Court asks EC for guidelines if NOTA gets maximum votes
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New Delhi: The Supreme Court issued a notice to the Election Commission of India after a petition sought to declare an election void if maximum voters opt for 'none of the above'.
Motivational speaker Shiv Khera in a petition sought to declare results null and void in a constituency where maximum votes go to NOTA, NDTV reported.
Subsequently , the bench, led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, directed the poll panel to examine the rules surrounding NOTA.
"We will examine.Will issue notice.This is about electoral process too," the bench was quoted as saying.
Stressing the point, senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, representing the petitioner, referred to the example of Surat where election was not held after only one candidate was left in the fray.
The petitioner's counsel emphasized that if no other candidate was present voting should still be carried out as the option of NOTA exists.
Also, the petitioner sought for a five-year ban on the candidate who gets fewer votes than NOTA.
Following the apex court’s direction, the NOTA option was introduced in 2013.
NOTA has since become a vent for the voters to express dissatisfaction with candidates or register their protest.