Students from other States who are currently residents of Tamil Nadu could register as voters and vote in the State of their residence, said N. Gopalaswami, former Chief Election Commissioner.
At a lecture on ‘Indian elections and enduring myths’ held at the SRM Institute of Science and Technology on Saturday, he urged students to register and vote here instead of travelling to their home towns to exercise their franchise.
India was still a fledgling democracy with tendencies for violence and was yet to mature as a democracy, he said. The country required deployment of huge paramilitary forces during election, unlike the United States, Maldives and Sri Lanka, where citizens were committed to free and fair polls, he added.
Controversies continue to dog the use of electronic voting machines despite evidence that they cannot be tampered with, said Mr. Gopalaswami, who supervised the 15th Lok Sabha elections. The Election Commission had acceded to the demands of Voter Verified Paper Trail, but allegations of tampering had not ended, he said.
Mr. Gopalaswami said to conduct simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and the State Assemblies, it required an amendment to the Constitution.
First in a series
Member of Parliament and SRMIST founder chancellor T. R. Paarivendhar said the lecture was the first in a series planned by the institution on contemporary issues.
To a suggestion from Mr. Paarivendhar that the voting age be reduced from 18 to 16 years, Mr. Gopalaswami suggested that the MP introduce a private member’s bill in the House.
