Need for ‘One Nation One Voter ID’ - Re-enfranchising Migrant Voters

What is the issue?

Migrant workers have, for long, been forgotten voters, given their conditions of work.
Given this, there must be the political will to usher in a ‘One Nation One Voter ID’ to ensure ballot portability.

What are the recent changes made by the ECI?

In response to the pandemic, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has made it possible for senior citizens above the age of 65 to vote by postal ballot.
This is given the fact that they are at greater risk from exposure to the novel coronavirus.
[Until now, this option was available only to disabled citizens and those above 80 years.]
The same empowering approach could be extended to the migrants who evidently face difficulties in exercising their franchise.

How significant are the migrant workers?

Internal migrant workers constitute about 13.9 crore as in the Economic Survey of 2017.
This is nearly a third of India’s labour force.
They travel across India in search of an economic livelihood.
They engage in the construction sector, as domestic work, in brick kilns, mines, transportation, security, agriculture, etc.

What is the present scenario?

With COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown, the country witnessed the magnitude of internal migration.
The hardships that migrant workers endured in their quest for livelihoods were also apparent.
The humiliation they faced showed how politically powerless they were perceived to be.

Why are they called the forgotten voters?

Most of the migrant workers never intend to settle down in their locations of work.
They only wish to return to their native villages and towns once their work is completed or the working season ends.
Often they toil in exploitative low-wage jobs, lacking identity and proper living conditions.
So, they often go without access to welfare.
Internal migrant workers do not enrol as voters in their place of employment.
This is because they find it hard to provide proof of residence.
They also cannot afford to return home on election day to vote.
Thus, migrant workers become quasi-disenfranchised, and forgotten voters.
It is perhaps this group does not constitute a vote bank worthy of attention.
Also, since they do not have a vote where they work, their concerns are easy to ignore in their host State.
Sometimes, they are targeted for allegedly taking jobs away from the local population.

What do the voters turn out show?

It is indeed a matter of pride that India currently has over 91.05 crore registered voters.
In the 2019 general election, a record 67.4% cast their vote.
The ECI would do well to focus attention on the one-third, a substantial 29.68 crore, who did not cast their vote.
National Election Study surveys have shown that about 10% of registered voters refrain from voting due to a lack of interest in politics.
That leaves approximately 20 crore voters who want to vote but are unable to do so.
Of these there are about 3 crore Non Resident Indians (NRIs).
Only about 1 lakh NRIs have registered to vote, presumably because voting requires their physical presence in India.
Of them, about 25,000 voted in the 2019 elections.
To enable NRIs to exercise their franchise, the government brought in legislation in the previous Lok Sabha to enable voting through authorised proxies.
The legislation lapsed.
However, it is interesting to contrast the concern for NRIs with the lack thereof for poor migrant workers.

What are the models in place for voter portability?

Service voters (government employees) posted away from home can vote through the Electronically Transmitted Postal Ballot System (ETPBS).
Classified service voters (e.g., military personnel) can do so through their proxies.
The ECI has said that it is testing an Aadhaar-linked voter-ID based solution.
This is to enable electors to cast their votes digitally from anywhere in the country.
It will be some time in the future before this becomes a functional reality.

What is the way forward?

Ensuring that every Indian who is eligible to vote can do so must be a central mission for the ECI.
Voting must be viewed not just as a civic duty but also as a civic right.
In developing the Aadhaar-linked voter-ID based solution, it must be ensured that the linkage does not result in the exclusion of eligible individuals.
Meanwhile, the existing forms of voter portability can be utilised for re-enfranchising migrant workers as well.
To facilitate migrant workers voting, the ECI could undertake substantial outreach measures using the network of District Collectorates.
Migrants should be able to physically vote in their city of work, based on the address on their existing voter IDs and duration of their temporary stay.
The COVID-19 crisis has mobilised governments and NGOs to set up registers and portals to reach out to migrant workers.
So, in the lines of the ‘One Nation One Ration Card’, a ‘One Nation One Voter ID’ will ensure native ballot portability and empower the forgotten migrant voters.
Ensuring that every Indian voter can participate in elections is imperative to ensure a democratically inclusive India.

Source: The Hindu