Article 55 of the Costitution of India with Case law
Article 55 of the Constitution of India – Manner of Election of President
Text of Article 55:
Article 55. Manner of election of President
(1) As far as practicable, there shall be uniformity in the scale of representation of the different States at the election of the President.
(2) For the purpose of securing such uniformity among the States inter se as well as parity between the States as a whole and the Union, the number of votes which each elected member of Parliament and of the Legislative Assembly of each State is entitled to cast at such election shall be determined in the following manner:
(a) every elected member of the Legislative Assembly of a State shall have as many votes as there are multiples of one thousand in the quotient obtained by dividing the population of the State by the total number of the elected members of the Assembly;
(b) if, after taking the said multiples of one thousand, the remainder is not less than five hundred, then the vote of each member shall be further increased by one;
(c) each elected member of either House of Parliament shall have such number of votes as may be obtained by dividing the total number of votes assigned to the members of the Legislative Assemblies of the States under sub-clauses (a) and (b) by the total number of the elected members of both Houses of Parliament, fractions exceeding one-half being counted as one and other fractions being disregarded.
(3) The election of the President shall be held in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote, and the voting at such election shall be by secret ballot.
Key Concepts:
Uniformity and Parity:
Aims for equal representation for all states.
Also maintains parity between the Union and State votes.
Value of Votes:
Based on the population of the state (as per 1971 Census until further revision).
Formula:
For MLA: (Population of State ÷ Total elected MLAs) ÷ 1000 = Value of MLA’s vote.
For MP: Total value of all MLA votes ÷ Total elected MPs = Value of MP's vote.
Proportional Representation:
The President is elected by an electoral college using single transferable vote.
Voting is secret to ensure independent choice.
Related Case Law:
1. Union of India v. Association for Democratic Reforms (2002) 5 SCC 294
Though not directly about Article 55, this case emphasized free and fair elections, reinforcing the need for secrecy and integrity in elections — principles applicable to the Presidential election as well.
2. Kuldeep Nayar v. Union of India (2006) 7 SCC 1
Addressed the concept of secret ballot and open voting.
Though the case dealt with Rajya Sabha elections, the Supreme Court affirmed that secret ballot as mandated in Article 55(3) is essential for presidential elections.
3. Kuldip Nayar v. Union of India (2006) — indirectly reasserts that the proportional representation system (as in Article 55(3)) ensures a balanced democratic process in indirect elections.
Practical Example:
In the Presidential Election of 2022:
The value of each MLA's vote varied from state to state based on its 1971 population and number of MLAs.
For example:
UP MLA's vote = 208
Sikkim MLA's vote = 7
Total value of MP's vote was adjusted accordingly.
Conclusion:
Article 55 ensures that the President of India is elected through a balanced, proportional, and federal mechanism, reflecting the diversity of India while maintaining equality in the electoral process.
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