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The court noted that the government was aware of the issue and had even introduced a Bill to amend the Representation of the People Act to allow overseas Indians to vote by proxy. The Representation of the People (Amendment) Bill had however lapsed with the dissolution of the 16th Lok Sabha.
The court asked Attorney-General R. Venkataramani whether the government was considering the option of digital voting.
Representation of the People (Amendment) Bill of 2017 had proposed the removal of an “unreasonable restriction” posed by Section 20A of the Representation of the People Act requiring overseas electors to be physically present in their electoral constituencies to cast their votes.
The efforts to give remote voting rights to NRIs had also seen the Election Commission prepare a report titled ‘Exploring Feasibility of Alternative Options for Voting by Overseas Electors’ and present it in the apex court. The poll body said NRI voters could be empowered better by amending the law.
