Electoral Reforms

* The right to vote and to be elected in India is a constitutional right, enshrined in Article 326 of the Indian Constitution. * Article 326 grants the right to vote to every Indian citizen based on universal adult suffrage, ensuring that elections to the Parliament and State Legislatures are conducted democratically. * The Constitution (Sixty-first Amendment) Act, 1988, reduced the minimum voting age for elections to the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies from 21 years to 18 years. This amendment aimed to enhance youth participation in the electoral process and strengthen democratic representation. * While the right to vote is a constitutional right, it is subject to reasonable restrictions based on factors such as non-residence, unsoundness of mind, crime, or corrupt practices as prescribed by law.

**Statement 1 is incorrect.** Parole is not an absolute right in India. There's a consideration process involved. While a prisoner can present their case for parole, the authorities have the discretion to grant or deny it. **Statement 2 is correct.** State governments do have their own set of rules governing parole within the broad framework provided by the Prison Act, of 1894 and the Prisoner Act, of 1900.

* **Statement 1 is incorrect:** The elected members of the Upper and Lower Houses of Parliament that is the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha as well as the elected Members of the Legislative Assemblies of States and Union Territories (Delhi, Puducherry and J&K) comprise the electoral college for the Presidential Election in India. * **Statement 2 is incorrect:** The value of the vote of each MLA depends on the ratio of the States population and the number of MLAs in its legislative Assembly. By dividing the States population by the number of MLAs in its legislative Assembly, and then further dividing the quotient achieved by 1000, one may calculate the value of each MLAs vote. Based on a calculation that takes into account each States population about the number of members in its legislative Assembly, each MLAs vote value varies from State to State. According to the Constitution (Eighty-fourth Amendment) Act of 2001, the population of the States is currently calculated using data from the 1971 Census. * **Statement 3 is incorrect:** The vote value of each MLA of Madhya Pradesh is less than that of the vote value of each MLA of Kerala as the ratio of total population to total elective seats in Kerala is greater relative to that in Madhya Pradesh. * **Statement 4 is correct:** The vote value of each MLA of Puducherry is higher than that of Arunachal Pradesh as the ratio of total population to total elective seats in Puducherry is greater relative to that in Arunachal Pradesh. In the 2022 Presidential election, the vote value of each MLA from Puducherry was 16 whereas the vote value of each MLA from Arunachal Pradesh came out to be 8.