What are Bypolls?
Bypolls, also known as bye-elections or special elections, refer to elections held to fill vacant seats in the legislative bodies of India.
It serves as a vital component within the broader electoral cycle and complements regular elections by addressing unforeseen vacancies.
Purpose:
The primary objective of bypolls is to ensure the timely filing of vacant seats, enabling the representation of the affected constituency or district in the legislative body
Occurrence:
Bypolls are conducted when a seat in the legislature becomes vacant due to reasons such as the death, resignation, disqualification, or expulsion of a sitting member.
Timeframe:
Section 151A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 mandates the Election Commission to fill the casual vacancies in the Houses of Parliament and State Legislatures through bye elections within six months from the date of occurrence of the vacancy, provided that the remainder of the term of a member in relation to a vacancy is one year or more
Hence, there is no need to hold bye elections if the remaining term of the Lok Sabha is less than one year from the date of occurrence of vacancies
COMMENTS