PIL in SC Seeking To Make Bribery & Other Election Offences Cognizable

On Monday the Supreme Court dismissed the PIL filed by the BJP and advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhaya demanding a punishment for electoral offences, false statement, undue influence, bribery. In the support of the proposal of the Election Commission of India given on 15 Feb 1992 to make electoral offences a cognizable offence with a minimum of 2 yr. jail time.

The plea made by the advocate and BJP leader Ashwini Kumar Upadhaya was filled for, bribery, undue influence, false statement and impersonation are electoral offences with comes under section 171B, 171C, 171G, 171D of the IPC (non-cognizable offences) to convert them into cognizable offences with minimum jail time of 2 years.False statement and the failure to keep election record only punished with rupees 500/-

This was first proposed by the Election Commission of India in the year 1992, BJP leader and advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhaya also stated that the ECI in the year 2012 recommended to the home ministry to amend and make electoral offences and bribery as cognizable offences, and the home ministry conveyed that it has initiated the process and will amend the sections 171B and 171 E of the IPC soon but till date the no such thing has been done.

Upadhaya also stated that these offences have caused injury to the public and has heavily caused years to the public and has effected affected the free and fair election under article 14,19and 324 of the Indian Constitution.

The PIL and various other recommendation made by the ECI has brought the attention of the parliament on this issue and the effects which this issue carries and has pinned the issue in the to-do list If at any further point of time in the future such amendments as proposed by the ECI and the PIL are made with or without and modification that is making electoral offences as a cognizable offence, it will heavily affect such unfair practices which is against the dictum of democracy.