Jagdeep Dhankhar resigns: How is Vice President elected in India? | Defined

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar stepped down from his place on Monday night, citing well being causes. In his resignation letter addressed to President Droupadi Murmu, Dhankhar stated that he was resigning with instant impact in an effort to “prioritise well being care”. “To prioritise well being care and abide by medical recommendation, I hereby resign as Vice President of India, efficient instantly, in accordance with Article 67(a) of the Structure,” he stated within the letter to the President.

Dhankhar, 74, assumed workplace in August 2022 and his tenure was until August 2027. His resignation, which additionally means stepping down as Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, got here on the primary day of the Monsoon session of Parliament.

Who might be the Vice President of India?

To be eligible for Vice President, an individual should be:

• Be a citizen of India 
• Has accomplished the age of 35 years 
• Is certified for election as a member of the Rajya Sabha
• Doesn’t maintain any workplace of revenue below the Authorities of India or a State Authorities or any subordinate native authority

How is the Vice President elected?

The Election Fee of India conducts the election to the workplace of the Vice-President.

As per Article 66 of the Structure of India, the Vice-President is elected by the members of the Electoral School consisting of the members of each Homes of Parliament in accordance with the system of proportional illustration via the one transferable vote.  The Electoral School to elect an individual to the workplace of the Vice-President consists of all members of each Homes of Parliament.

Voting is completed by way of a secret poll utilizing the Single Transferable Vote (STV) system. This implies MPs rank the candidates so as of choice. Every voter should mark ‘1’ subsequent to the identify of their first selection. They’ll then mark ‘2’, ‘3’, ‘4’, and so forth., subsequent to different candidates within the order they like. The numbers ought to be written in digits, both in Indian numerals, Roman numerals, or any Indian language, however not in phrases.

To win the election, a candidate should get a minimal variety of votes, known as the quota.

• The quota is calculated as: (Complete legitimate votes ÷ 2) + 1 (Any the rest is ignored.)

How the method works:

• First, the variety of first-preference votes for every candidate is counted.
• If any candidate will get votes equal to or greater than the quota, they’re declared elected.
• If nobody reaches the quota, then the method continues to the subsequent spherical of counting.

What occurs if nobody will get the quota?

• The candidate with the fewest votes is faraway from the election.
• All of their poll papers are checked once more.
• The votes are actually transferred to the remaining candidates primarily based on the subsequent choice marked on every poll.
• If a second choice is marked, the vote goes to that candidate.
• If no second choice is marked, the vote is taken into account exhausted and never counted additional.
• If any candidate reaches the quota after this switch, they’re declared elected.

If nonetheless nobody is elected:

• The subsequent candidate with the bottom votes is eliminated.
• All their poll papers, together with these acquired within the earlier spherical, are checked once more for the subsequent obtainable choice.
• If the second choice is for somebody already out, the vote goes to the third choice, and so forth.
• This course of continues, eradicating the bottom candidates and transferring votes, till somebody reaches the quota and is elected.

After the election has been held and the votes have been counted, the Returning Officer declares the results of the election. Thereafter, he studies the outcome to the Central Authorities (Ministry of Legislation & Justice) and the Election Fee of India, and the federal government publishes the identify of the individual elected as Vice President within the Official Gazette.

 When will the brand new Vice President be elected?

An election to fill a emptiness brought on by the expiry of the time period of workplace of the Vice President is accomplished earlier than the expiry of the time period. In case a emptiness arises by purpose of loss of life, resignation, elimination, or in any other case, the election to fill that emptiness is held as quickly as doable after the incidence. 

The individual so elected is entitled to carry workplace for a full time period of 5 years from the date he enters workplace.

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