GENERAL ELECTIONS 2014 Reference Handbook Disclaimer : This Reference Handbook has been prepared by the Press Information Bureau solely for the purpose of providing information to the media persons about past General Elections conducted by the Election Commission of India (ECI). Though all efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy and currency of the contours of this book, the same should not be construed as a statement of law or used for any legal purposes. In case of any ambiguity or doubts, readers are advised to verify /check with the website of ECI or other sources. Statistical Sources & References: The Statistical information/data of past General Elections and various orders of the Election Commission of India (ECI) have been taken from the ECI’s website (www.eci.nic.in) For Feedback: Please send your feedback by email to Shri Rajesh Malhotra, Director ( M&C), Election Commission of India, Press Information Bureau. Email address: [email protected] Contact No : 011-23385993 CONTENTS Section I Schedule for General Elections 2014 Page No. 1. Schedule for General Elections 2014 1 2. State/UT wise Seats in the Lok Sabha 17 3. Parliamentary Constituencies Reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes 19 Section II Demographic Profile of the Electorate 4. A Snapshot of the Indian Electorate for General Elections 2014 23 5. Gender-wise Composition of the Indian Electorate 26 6. Distribution of Indian Electors Aged between 18 and 19 Years across States and Union Territories 29 7. Gender-wise Composition of Indian Electors Aged between 18 and 19 Years 31 8. Comparison of the Indian Electorate from 1951-52 to 2014 34 9. Analysis of the Indian Electorate from 1998 to 2014 38 Section III Statistical Information on General Elections 2009 10. Political Parties Participated in General Elections 2009 41 11. Representation of Political Parties in 15th Lok Sabha 52 12. Winners and Runners-up in General Elections 2009 54 13. List of Winning Candidates with Winning Margin Less than 10000 Votes in General Elections 2009 77 14. Age-wise Distribution of Contestants & Winners in General Elections 2009 82 15. Position of Contestants of Major Political Parties in General Elections 2009 85 16. Seats Won by Parties in SC Constituencies in General Elections 2009 87 17. Seats Won by Parties in ST Constituencies in General Elections 2009 88 18. Performance of Women Candidates in States & UTs in General Elections 2009 89 19. Women’s Participation in General Elections 2009 90 20. Size of Electorate & Valid Votes Polled in General Elections 2009 91 Section IV Comparative Analysis of General Elections 2004 & 2009 21. Performance of Political Parties in General Elections 2009 & 2004 93 22. Performance of Political Parties State-wise in General Elections 2009 & 2004 96 23. Performance of Women (Political Party-wise) in General Elections 2009 & 2004 131 24. Votes Secured by Winners as Percentage of Voters & Electors in General Elections 2004 & 2009 133 25. Size of Electorate in General Elections 1998, 1999, 2004 & 2009 134 26. Number of Polling Stations in General Elections 1999, 2004 & 2009 136 27. Interesting Facts of General Elections 2009 & 2004 137 Section V Statistics of All General Elections since Independence 28. Facts about Successive General Elections 1951-52 – 2009 139 29. Number of Contestants & Winners in General Elections 1951-52 – 2009 140 30. Representation of Women Members in Lok Sabha : 1951-52 – 2009 141 31. Performance of Independent Candidates in General Elections 1951-52 – 2009 143 32. Voting Percentage in General Elections 1951-52 – 2009 144 33. Election Expenditure by Central Government for General Elections 1951-52 – 2009 145 34. Poll Dates of General Elections 1951-52 – 2009 146 35. Winners with Highest and Lowest Margins of Victory 1962 – 2009 147 36. Overview of General Elections 1951-52 – 2009 149 Section VI Socio-Economic Analysis of Lok Sabha Members 37. Average Age of Members from 1st to 15th Lok Sabha 151 38. Educational Background of Members from 1st to 15th Lok Sabha 152 39. Prior Legislative Experience of Members of 15th Lok Sabha 153 40. List of Members Elected to 15th Lok Sabha for More than 4 Times till 2009 154 Section VII Election Management 41. Evolution of Electoral System of India 157 42. Electoral Laws of India 158 43. Salient Features of The Representation of the People Act, 1951 161 44. Expenditure Monitoring Mechanism 168 45. SVEEP: For Making Elections Inclusive 170 46. Indelible Ink: Mark on finger, A moment of Pride 174 47. Model Code of Conduct & Its Evolution 175 48. FAQs on Model Code of Conduct 181 49. Electronic Voting Machine and its Chronological Development 183 50. FAQs on Electronic Voting Machine 185 51. VVPAT : Voter-Verifiable Paper Audit Trail 189 52. NOTA : None of the Above 191 53. FAQs on Election Process 193 54. FAQs on Voters’ Enrollment Process 202 Section VIII The Representation of the People Act, 1951 55. Important Provisions of Representation of the People Act, 1951 207 Section 8 – Disqualification on conviction for certain offences Section 8 A – Disqualification on ground of corrupt practices Section 34 – Deposits Section 52 – Death of a candidate of a recognized political party before poll Section 77 – Account of election expenses and maximum thereof Section 123 – Corrupt practices Section 126 – Prohibition of public meetings Section 126 A – Restriction on publication and dissemination of result of exit polls. Section 126 B – Offences by companies Section 158 – Return or forfeiture of candidates’ deposits Section IX Important Orders of ECI 56. Maximum Election Expenses Under Rule 90 of Conduct of Election Rules, 1961 215 57. The Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968 217 58. Election Commission’s Order Regarding Advertisements of Political nature on TV Channels & Cable TV Networks 219 59. Election Commission’s Order on Political Advertisements on TV Channels & Cable TV Networks - Extension to Radio 223 60. Election Commission’s Order on Advertisements of Political nature on TV channels, Cable Networks, and Radio - Clarification 224 61. Election Commission’s Order on Advertisement of Political nature on TV channels, Cable Network and Radio 225 62. Election Commission’s Guidelines on Paid News during Elections - Revised Guidelines 226 63. FAQs on Paid News & Media Certification and Monitoring Committee (MCMC) 230 64. Election Commission’s Instructions for Use of Social Media in Election Campaigning 234 65. Media Coverage during the period referred to in Section 126 of RP Act, 1951 236 66. Press Council of India’s Guidelines on Election Reporting, 1996 238 67. News Broadcasting Standards Authority's (NBSA) Guidelines for Election Broadcasts 240 Section X Performance of Political Parties in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha & Sikkim Assembly Elections in 2009 & 2004 Section XI Important Telephone Numbers and Email Addresses of Election Commission of India I Schedule for General Elections 2014 • Schedule for General Elections 2014 • State / UT-wise Seats in the Lok Sabha • Constituencies Reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Chapter 1 Chapter 1 SCHEDULE FOR GENERAL ELECTIONS 2014 Press Note by Election Commission of India announcing the Schedule for General Elections 2014. ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA Nirvachan Sadan, Ashoka Road, New Delhi – 110 001. No. ECI/PN/10/2014 Dated: 05.03.2014 PRESS NOTE SUBJECT: SCHEDULE FOR GENERAL ELECTIONS, 2014 The five year term of the 15th Lok Sabha is due to expire on 31st May, 2014. Credible elections, conducted at regular prescribed intervals, are the very soul of any democratic system. Article 324 of the Constitution of India bestows the relevant powers, duties and functions upon the Election Commission of India while Section 14 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 provides for conduct of the elections to constitute a new Lok Sabha before the expiry of its current term. Taking into account these Constitutional and legal provisions, the Election Commission of India has made comprehensive preparations for conduct of elections to the 16th Lok Sabha in a free, fair and peaceful manner. 2. Elections to world’s largest democracy pose immense challenges with respect to logistics and man and material management and Commission’s endeavour in this direction has been to consult all stakeholders, invite inputs from all relevant departments/ organizations and evolve a coordinated framework for smooth delivery of yet another round of General Elections. 3. In the course of assessing various dimensions involved in holding elections to the 543 Parliamentary Constituencies (PCs) and, in particular, the parameters to be considered for their scheduling and phasing, the Election Commission of India held a meeting with the representatives of all recognized National and State Political Parties on 4th February, 2014. At this meeting, the Commission also shared its concerns with the representatives of the Political Parties on certain aspects relating to maintenance of the standards of election campaign and political discourse which the Commission has assiduously been trying to ensure, with cooperation from all stakeholders, over the past few decades. 4. The issues that emerged during the meeting with Political Parties provided the backdrop for the planning process to be taken forward. In this direction, the Commission organized a Conference of the Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) of all the 35 States and Union Territories (UTs) on 10th February, 2014 at New Delhi. All aspects of election preparedness were reviewed for each State/ UT and relevant instructions were issued to the CEOs for ensuring efficient conduct of the elections. 5. The Commission also held a meeting with the Chief Secretaries, Directors General of Police, Home Secretaries, Chief Electoral Officers and Police Nodal Officers of all States and UTs on 20th February, 2014, to assess the overall law and order situation, ascertain State/ UT specific areas of concern, deliberate on the quantum of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) required in each State/ UT and to review the overall preparedness of the election machinery.