What you need to know:
- NRIs can register on the Election Commission website.
- A form has to be filled and submitted.
Dubai: Good news for Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) – you might be able to vote in the 2019 Indian elections!
On the official website of the Election Commission of India, there is now a provision that allows NRIs to register as a voter.
If you click on the button titled ‘Enroll as NRI voter’, it takes you to a form that needs to be filled and submitted to register as a voter in the 2019 general elections.
This provision benefits 31 million NRIs around the world, who are unable to cast their vote because they are no longer a resident of India.
In the form, there is a list of guidelines that need to be adhered to. The form clearly states thatIndians who have acquired citizenships of other countries will not be eligible. This provision has come about after a bill to amend the electoral law to allow NRIs to vote came up before the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian parliament last year.
Currently, overseas Indians are free to cast their votes if they are physically present in the constituencies where they are registered.
An official announcement on this has not been made by the authorities yet.
The 2019 Lok Sabha elections will be held sometime around April and May. The tenure of the Narendra Modi-led NDA government will end on May 26, 2019.
