Not many takers for NOTA in these polls too

The None of the Above (NOTA) option once again found few takers, with 0.75 per cent of the electorate pressing the button in Maharashtra and 1.32 per cent in Jharkhand. Votes for the assembly elections in these two states were counted on Saturday.

IMAGE: Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde shows a victory sign as he celebrates Mahayuti's lead in state assembly elections, in Mumbai on Saturday. Photograph: ANI Photo

According to Election Commission (EC) data, less than one per cent (0.75 per cent) electors used the 'none of the above' or NOTA option in Maharashtra where elections were held for 288 seats.

In Jharkhand, a little over one per cent (1.32 per cent) of the electorate exercised the option.

According to the EC, Maharashtra witnessed a 65.02 per cent voter turnout in its single-phase polls on November 20.

Jharkhand recorded a voter turnout of 66.65 per cent in the first phase and 68.45 per cent in the second phase on November 13 and November 20, respectively.

In the previous set of assembly polls, more voters in Jammu and Kashmir used the NOTA option against those in Haryana.

In the elections to the 90-member Haryana Assembly, out of over two crore electors, 67.90 per cent had exercised their franchise. Of these, 0.38 per cent had used the NOTA option.

Introduced in 2013, the NOTA option on electronic voting machines (EVMs) has its own symbol -- a ballot paper with a black cross across it.

The EC added the NOTA button on EVMs as the last option on the voting panel after a September 2013 Supreme Court order. Before the apex court's order, those not inclined to vote for any candidate had the option of filling what is popularly called Form 49-O.

But filling out the form at the polling station under Rule 49-O of the Conduct of Elections Rules, 1961, compromised the secrecy of the voter.

The Supreme Court had, however, refused to direct the EC to hold fresh polls if the majority of the electorate exercised the NOTA option while voting.

Recently, former chief election commissioner O P Rawat had said, "In the present situation, NOTA has only symbolic significance and it cannot have an impact on the election result of any seat."

"More than 50 per cent electors will have to opt for NOTA in a seat to show the political community that they do not consider candidates with criminal backgrounds or other undeserving ones worthy of their votes. Only after this, pressure on Parliament and the Election Commission will increase and they will have to think about changing laws to make NOTA effective on the election results," he had said.