By IANS,
Chandigarh: Non-resident Indians (NRIs), desirous of voting in Indian elections, can apply to be registered as voters at their place of residence in the country if they are otherwise eligible, officials said Monday.
“Every overseas elector, i.e., Indian citizen who is absent from his place of ordinary residence in India owing to employment, education or otherwise, and has not acquired citizenship of any other country and who is not included in the electoral roll, is entitled to have his/her name registered in the electoral roll of the constituency in which his/her place of residence in India as mentioned in his/her passport is located,” said Punjab’s chief electoral officer Kusumjit Sidhu, quoting the amendment of the Representation of People’s Act.
“In terms of rule 8A of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, every overseas elector whose place of residence in India is located in the state of Punjab, who has completed 18 years of age as on 01.01.2011, and is desirous of registering his/her name in the electoral roll, is invited hereby to submit claim application in Form 6-A for registration in the electoral roll of the constituency in which his/her place of residence as shown in the passport is located,” she said, in a statement issued here.
Punjab has hundreds of NRIs living in other countries, especially US, Britain, Canada, the Gulf countries, Australia, New Zealand, south-east Asia and Europe.
Sidhu added that the claim application (Form-6A) can be either submitted in person directly to the registration officer of the constituency concerned or sent to such registration officer by post along with the documents mentioned.
“When the claim application is sent by post, it should be accompanied by photocopies of the relevant pages of the passport duly attested by the competent official of the Indian mission in the country concerned,” she added.