QUESTION

GS

Hard

Indian Polity

Prelims 2023

Consider the following statements in respect of election to the President of India:

  1. The members nominated to either House of the Parliament or the Legislative Assemblies of States are also eligible to be included in the Electoral College.
  2. Higher the number of elective Assembly seats, higher is the value of vote of each MLA of that State.
  3. The value of vote of each MLA of Madhya Pradesh is greater than that of Kerala.
  4. The value of vote of each MLA of Puducherry is higher than that of Arunachal Pradesh because the ratio of total population to total number of elective seats in Puducherry is greater as compared to Arunachal Pradesh

How many of the above statements are correct?

Select an option to attempt

Explanation

Statement 1 is Incorrect: The electoral college for the Presidential election consists only of the elected members of both Houses of Parliament and the elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of the States (including the National Capital Territory of Delhi and the Union Territory of Puducherry). Nominated members of either House of Parliament or State Assemblies are not eligible. Currently, the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir is not included in the electoral college under Article 54.

Statement 2 is Incorrect: The value of an MLA's vote is calculated by dividing the total population of the State (based on the 1971 Census) by the total number of elected members in the Legislative Assembly, and then dividing the result by 1000. A higher number of elective seats (the denominator) does not automatically mean a higher vote value; rather, it depends on the ratio of the population to the number of seats.

Statement 3 is Incorrect: Based on the 1971 Census data used for elections, the value of the vote of each MLA of Madhya Pradesh is 131, whereas the value of the vote of each MLA of Kerala is 152. Therefore, the value is higher for Kerala.

Statement 4 is Correct: The value of the vote of each MLA of Puducherry (16) is higher than that of Arunachal Pradesh (8). This is because the ratio of the total population to the total number of elective seats in Puducherry is greater than the corresponding ratio in Arunachal Pradesh.

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