The latest data of the Commission shows that more voters opted for NOTA in Jammu and Kashmir than in Haryana. In the elections held for the 90-member Haryana Assembly, 67.90 percent of the more than two crore voters exercised their franchise. Of these, 0.38 percent used the None of the Above (NOTA) option on the voting machine.
A total of 63.88 percent voters voted in the elections held in three phases for 90 seats of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly. Of these, 1.48 percent chose NOTA option. According to trends, not more than two percent of voters have opted for NOTA, which shows the reluctance of voters to choose this option.
The NOTA option on electronic voting machines introduced in 2013 has its own symbol – a ballot paper with a black cross on it. Following a Supreme Court order in September 2013, the Election Commission added the NOTA button on EVMs as the last option on the voting panel. Before the Supreme Court order, people who did not want to vote for any candidate had the option of filling Form 49-O. But under Rule 49-O of the Election Conduct Rules, 1961, filling the form at the polling station compromised the voter’s privacy.
However, the Supreme Court had refused to direct the Election Commission to conduct re-election if a majority of voters exercised the NOTA option while voting. Recently, former Chief Election Commissioner OP Rawat had said, “In the present situation, NOTA has only symbolic importance and cannot affect the election result of any seat.” He had said, “More than 50 per cent of voters in a seat will have to opt for NOTA once, to show the political community that they do not consider candidates with criminal background or other ineligible candidates worthy of their votes. There will be increased pressure on Parliament and the Election Commission and they will have to think about changing the law to make NOTA effective on election results.”
