Why in News? Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar resigned recently , creating a rare mid-term vacancy in India’s second-highest constitutional office.

He is the third Vice-President to resign before completing his term, following V.V. Giri and R. Venkataraman, who stepped down to contest presidential elections and were succeeded by Gopal Swarup Pathak and Shankar Dayal Sharma, respectively.

Who performs the Vice-President’s duties now?

• The Constitution does not provide for an acting Vice-President. However, as the Vice-President is the ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, the Deputy Chairman, currently Harivansh Narayan Singh, will preside over the Rajya Sabha in the Vice-President’s absence.

When will the election be held?

• Unlike the President, where the Constitution mandates filling a vacancy within six months, there is no fixed deadline for a Vice-Presidential election. The Constitution requires the election to be held “as soon as possible.”
• The Election Commission will announce the schedule, and the poll will be conducted under the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952. Conventionally, the Secretary General of either House of Parliament is appointed as the Returning Officer, in rotation.

How long will the new Vice-President serve?

• The elected Vice-President will serve a full five-year term from the date of assuming office, not merely the remainder of Dhankhar’s tenure.

 How is a new Vice-President elected?

• The Vice-President is elected by an electoral college comprising members of both Houses of Parliament—Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, including nominated members. State legislatures do not participate, unlike in presidential elections. Voting occurs in Parliament House, New Delhi, by secret ballot, using proportional representation with a single transferable vote. Each MP ranks candidates by preference, with all votes carrying equal value.
• A candidate must secure a minimum quota of votes, calculated by dividing the total valid votes by two and adding one (ignoring fractions). If no candidate meets the quota in the first round, the candidate with the fewest first-preference votes is eliminated, and their votes are redistributed based on second preferences. This continues until a candidate surpasses the quota.

What are the eligibility criteria for candidates?

• A Vice-Presidential candidate must be an Indian citizen, at least 35 years old, qualified for election to the Rajya Sabha, and registered as an elector in any parliamentary constituency. They must not hold any office of profit under the central or state governments, except roles like President, Governor, or Minister.

About the Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952:

• The Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Act, 1952 is an Indian law that regulates the election process for the offices of the President and Vice-President of India. Enacted on March 14, 1952, it provides a legal framework for the nomination, election, and dispute resolution processes related to these constitutional positions, in alignment with Articles 54 to 71 of the Indian Constitution.

Key Provisions of the Act:

Definitions (Section 2):

• Election: Refers to either a Presidential or Vice-Presidential election.
• Elector: For a Presidential election, an elector is a member of the electoral college as per Article 54 (elected members of both Houses of Parliament and elected members of State Legislative Assemblies, including those of Delhi and Puducherry). For a Vice-Presidential election, electors are members of both Houses of Parliament (elected and nominated) as per Article 66.

Nomination of Candidates (Section 5):

• Eligibility: Candidates must meet constitutional qualifications:

• For President: Must be a citizen of India, at least 35 years old, and qualified to be elected as a Lok Sabha member (Article 58).
• For Vice-President: Same as above, but must be qualified to be a Rajya Sabha member (Article 66).
• Candidates cannot hold any office of profit.

• Nomination Process:

• • Nomination papers must be delivered to the Returning Officer in New Delhi between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. on any day (except public holidays) before the specified deadline.
  • Each nomination must be accompanied by a certified copy of the candidate’s entry in the electoral roll of their Parliamentary constituency.
  • A deposit of Rs15,000 is required, refundable if the nomination is valid and the candidate is not elected.

• • For Presidential elections, nominations must be supported by at least 50 electors as proposers and 50 as seconders. For Vice-Presidential elections, the requirement is 20 proposers and 20 seconders.

• Scrutiny: The Returning Officer examines nominations under Section 5E, and invalid nominations may be rejected under Section 5B(4).

3. Election Process (Sections 4, 8-11):

• Notification: The Election Commission issues a notification under Section 4 to appoint dates for nominations, scrutiny, withdrawal, and polling. For elections due to term expiration, the notification is issued at least 60 days before the outgoing President or Vice-President’s term ends.
• Voting: Conducted using the Proportional Representation by Single Transferable Vote system. Polls for Vice-Presidential elections are held in the Parliament House (Rule 8, Presidential and Vice-Presidential Elections Rules, 1974).
• Counting and Results: After vote counting, the Returning Officer declares the result and reports it to the Central Government and Election Commission. The result is published in the Official Gazette.

4. Disputes Regarding Elections (Part III, Sections 13-20):

• Election Petitions: Disputes are resolved by the Supreme Court, which has exclusive jurisdiction. No civil court can question the legality of actions taken by the Returning Officer or other officials.
• Grounds for Declaring Election Void: The Supreme Court may declare an election void if:

• The elected candidate was not qualified or was disqualified.
• Corrupt practices (e.g., bribery, undue influence) materially affected the result.
• The nomination of a candidate was wrongly accepted or rejected.

• Authority for Disputes: Initially, the Act allowed Parliament to establish an authority for disputes, but amendments (post the Constitution’s Thirty-ninth Amendment Act, 1975) restored the Supreme Court as the sole authority for resolving election disputes.