There are two Representation of People Acts – the first enacted in 1950 and the second enacted in 1951. Both serve a different purpose. Both together form the backbone of Indian Electoral System.
- The Representation of the People Act, 1950: This act sets up the rules for things that happen before an election. It decides how many seats each state gets, draws the borders for voting areas (constituencies), and dictates how voter lists are made.
- The Representation of the People Act, 1951: This act covers the actual conduct of elections. It sets the rules for how candidates are nominated, how voting works, and how to handle election disputes. It also lists the rules that can disqualify a person from running for office.
Think of the 1950 Act as the “planning phase” and the 1951 Act as the “game day rules”.
Following are the latest versions of the Acts.
Both downloaded from the official digital repository of all central and state acts maintained by Government of India – INDIA CODE