Bhubaneswar: Amid fears of cross-voting ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections in the State, Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) has issued show cause notice to party MLA Dasarathi Gamango, who remains incommunicado ahead of the crucial Rajya Sabha elections scheduled for Monday.
Opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has also issued show-cause notices to two of its legislators for remaining absent from a crucial party meeting on Sunday. The notices were served to MLAs Naba Kishor Mallick and Chakramani Kanhar after they reportedly failed to attend the meeting despite the party issuing a whip related to the Rajya Sabha polls.
Their absence from the meeting has triggered internal concern within the party, especially at a time when coordination among legislators is considered ‘most important’ for the upcoming election process.
What is cross-voting?
Cross-voting or crossover voting is essentially a term used to describe when someone associated with one party votes for a candidate not belonging to his party. In the US democracy, it is accepted and often seen in the primaries as well when a voter feels inclined to vote for a candidate other than the one put up by his/her party.
At times, cross-voting can also be attributed to strategic or mischievous voting. However, in India, it often takes place during the Rajya Sabha elections and mainly is an outcome of horse-trading or corruption when money is given to vote against the official candidate of his party. It is also at times camouflaged as a conscience vote to give an impression that it was due to morality and not money that they indulge in cross-voting. This is often witnessed during the Rajya Sabha elections and the Presidential poll.
How are Rajya Sabha polls conducted?
Rajya Sabha is a permanent body that cannot be dissolved like the Lok Sabha. Unlike Lok Sabha members who are elected for five years directly by the public, Rajya Sabha members are elected for six years by the elected legislators of a state assembly. Every two years, one-third of members retire and elections are conducted. Bye-elections can also be conducted to fill up the vacancies caused by the resignation of a member or death. A member elected in the bye-election gets only the remaining period of the member he has replaced.
Elections are forced only when more candidates are in the fray than the seats to be filled. Since all political parties know the number of vacancies and their respective strengths, they field their candidates accordingly. For instance, no polling was required in Chhattisgarh as the ruling Congress party had fielded two candidates against two vacancies and they were declared elected unopposed as the opposition BJP did not field candidates in 2022.
What is the single transferable vote?
In the case of elections, the elected members, who are the voters, are given a ballot in which they have to indicate their preference in descending order. Voting is done based on a single transferable vote under which the voters have to list their choice number one and two in a specified format. Often the results are declared based on the counting of the first preference votes. However, the second preference votes come into play when out of two candidates, none secure the minimum vote to get elected.
Are Rajya Sabha polls based on secret voting?
No. It is a mix of open and secret voting. A voter belonging to a party has to compulsorily show his ballot to the authorised polling agent of his/her party, but it does not mean that he has to vote for the candidate of his party only. Failure to show the marked ballot before casting the vote can lead to their votes being rejected. Showing the ballot to the polling agent of anyone other than his/her own party can also result in the cancellation of the vote. Independents, however, are not required to show their marked ballots to any and if they do so, their votes are also not counted.
What is the open and secret ballot system followed in Rajya Sabha polls?
This practice is essentially followed to prevent corrupt practices or the use of money to purchase votes. A party comes to know beforehand who all have indulged in cross-voting and can subsequently take any action they deem fit against that legislator. This can be suspension or expulsion or any other form of disciplinary action that the party decides for its members, including denial of the ticket in the next assembly elections.
Does cross-voting attract disqualification?
No. Cross-voting does not come under the ambit of the anti-defection law, which is applicable only when voting takes place on the floor of the House. The Supreme Court in 2019 ruled that the anti-defection law is not applicable to Rajya Sabha elections since a voter is free to vote according to his free will. The apex court also states that since a party knows who has voted against the party, it can take disciplinary action. Hence, cross-voting does not mean automatic disqualification from the parent party.
When Odisha last witnessed cross-voting ?
The last confirmed instance of cross-voting in Rajya Sabha elections from Odisha occurred in 2002. In that year, independent candidate Dilip Ray (who later aligned with or was backed by BJP interests) won the Rajya Sabha seat despite being expelled from the BJD. His victory was secured through significant cross-voting by around 14-15 MLAs from the then-ruling BJD along with support from BJP and some Congress legislators. This was a notable case in a similar multi-candidate scenario for four seats, where cross-voting proved decisive for the extra seat.
Recent Rajya Sabha elections from Odisha (particularly post-2010s) have often been uncontested or decided via biennial retirements with candidates elected unopposed due to pre-poll arrangements or majority alignments, with no reported cross-voting incidents.
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