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Election Commission of India Class 9: Laws, Delimitation

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Social ScienceCBSE Class 9 · Elections

Election Commission of India Class 9: Functions, Laws and Delimitation

Updated 17 October 2026 · Fact-checked

The Election Commission of India is an autonomous, permanent constitutional body, set up on 25 January 1950, that supervises elections to Parliament, State legislatures and the offices of President and Vice President. It prepares electoral rolls, fixes schedules, registers parties and allots symbols. It works under the Representation of the People Acts of 1950 and 1951 and uses delimitation to keep constituencies equal in population.

Notice that the ECI, set up on 25 January 1950, has four functions: rolls, schedule, parties and symbols, and free and fair polls.

Illustration drawn for QuestionBuddy.

Understand Election Commission of India, Election Laws and Delimitation

The Election Commission of India (ECI). An autonomous, permanent constitutional body set up on 25 January 1950 (celebrated as National Voters' Day). Articles 324-329 provide for it. It has superintendence, direction and control of elections to the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, Vidhan Sabhas and Vidhan Parishads, and of the posts of President and Vice President. In each State a Chief Electoral Officer supervises the work; district officials act as District Election Officers, Returning Officers and Electoral Registration Officers.

Four main functions.
1. Electoral rolls. Enumerators visit households and rolls are prepared polling-station-wise; only listed people can vote. A Special Intensive Revision (SIR) updates, verifies and corrects the rolls: it adds new voters (especially those who just turned 18) and removes names for death, change of residence, duplication or being permanently untraceable; claims and objections are settled before the final roll.
2. Schedule. The ECI fixes dates when a House completes its five-year term or is dissolved, keeping weather, farming cycles, exams and festivals in mind.
3. Parties and symbols. It registers parties, allots symbols, insists on inner-party elections and classifies parties as national, State or registered-unrecognised. In disputes about recognition and symbols it acts as a quasi-judicial body.
4. Free, fair and inclusive elections. It enforces the Model Code of Conduct and uses EVMs with VVPAT.

Election laws.

  • Representation of the People Act, 1950 (RPA 1950): allocation of seats, delimitation of constituencies, preparation and revision of electoral rolls, and the right of every citizen of 18 and above to vote without discrimination.
  • Representation of the People Act, 1951 (RPA 1951): everything about *conducting* elections: nominations, campaigns, voting and post-election disputes; it also lists electoral offences and corrupt practices, such as a gift, offer or promise to make someone contest, withdraw, vote or not vote; appeals to vote on grounds of religion, caste, race, community or language; and taking help from government personnel such as gazetted officers, judges, magistrates, armed forces, police or excise officers.
  • A separate Act of 1952 covers the President and Vice President.

Delimitation. Population shifts, so constituency boundaries cannot be permanent. Without change, one MP might represent 5 lakh people while another represents 25 lakh, breaking equal representation. *Delimitation* fixes the number of seats and the boundaries of Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha constituencies in each State so that the ratio of seats to population is as equal as possible. Article 82 provides for a Delimitation Commission; India has had four, in 1952, 1963, 1973 and 2002.

Inclusion. Under the slogan "No Voter to Be Left Behind" the ECI uses EVMs with Braille, accessible infrastructure, and voting from home for senior citizens above 85 and for persons with disabilities having 40 per cent benchmark disability (extended across India in the 2024 General Elections). Digital tools include ETPBS (postal ballots for service voters), Voter Helpline App, cVIGIL (report Model Code of Conduct violations), ERONET (e-rolls), Sugam (vehicles), Suvidha (candidate permissions) and Saksham (for persons with disabilities).

Election Commission of India, Election Laws and Delimitation: key facts

ECI basics
  • Set up 25 January 1950
  • National Voters' Day
  • Articles 324-329
  • Autonomous, permanent, constitutional
Superintendence, direction, control.
Four functions
  • Electoral rolls (with SIR)
  • Schedule of elections
  • Register parties and allot symbols
  • Ensure free, fair, inclusive elections
Chapter list.
Two laws
RPA 1950: seats, delimitation, rolls, voting age 18 | RPA 1951: conduct, offences, corrupt practices, disputes
Plus the 1952 Act for President and Vice President.
Delimitation
  • Article 82
  • Commissions in 1952, 1963, 1973, 2002
  • Equal ratio of seats to population
Fixes seats and boundaries.
Digital tools
  • ETPBS service voters
  • cVIGIL report violations
  • Saksham persons with disabilities
  • Suvidha candidates
  • Sugam vehicles
  • ERONET e-rolls
Match name to purpose.

How to answer Election Commission of India, Election Laws and Delimitation questions

Questions ask what the ECI is, lists of its functions, differences between RPA 1950 and 1951, the purpose of delimitation, and match-the-tool items. Higher-order questions give a situation (a gift to voters, a lopsided constituency) and ask which provision applies.

  1. 1Identify whether the question is about the body (ECI), a law (RPA 1950 or 1951) or a process (delimitation).
  2. 2For ECI, give status first (autonomous, permanent, constitutional), then functions.
  3. 3For RPA questions, decide whether the issue is about rolls and seats (1950) or conduct and offences (1951).
  4. 4For a situation, quote the clue and name the provision (for example "promise of money to vote" is a corrupt practice under RPA 1951).
  5. 5End with the democratic purpose: free, fair and inclusive elections.

Election Commission of India, Election Laws and Delimitation in real life

The idea, met in an everyday situation. Answer the question in your own words, then compare with the model answer. The one-line hook is what to remember.

Unequal constituencies

Suppose two neighbouring constituencies elect one representative each. After twenty years, constituency M has 6 lakh people and constituency N has 18 lakh people.

Why is this a problem and what is the remedy?

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. One representative speaks for three times as many people in N as in M.
  2. Votes in M count for more than votes in N, which breaks equal representation.
  3. Delimitation redraws boundaries and adjusts seats so the ratio of seats to population is as equal as possible.

Answer: The gap means one vote in M carries about three times the weight of one vote in N (18 lakh / 6 lakh = 3). Delimitation by a Delimitation Commission under Article 82 corrects it by redrawing boundaries or adjusting seats.

Memory hook: Equal people per seat, equal weight per vote.

A name missing from the roll

Suppose a young man turns 18 and finds that his name is not on the electoral roll of his polling station when elections are announced.

What does the election system in the chapter say about his right to vote?

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. Only people on the roll can vote.
  2. RPA 1950 gives every citizen aged 18 and above the right to vote and governs the preparation and revision of rolls.
  3. Revisions such as the SIR add new voters and settle claims before the final roll.

Answer: He cannot vote until his name is added, but he has the right to be enrolled and should make a claim during roll revision. This is why the ECI's revision of rolls matters for inclusion.

Memory hook: No name on the roll, no vote on the day.

Tricks to remember Election Commission of India, Election Laws and Delimitation

Short memory aids. Say each one aloud once, then use it on a question the same day.

  • ECI: R-S-P-F

    Rolls, Schedule, Parties, Fair elections.

    Use it when: The four functions.

  • Fifty-one, fifty-oh

    1950 = rolls and seats; 1951 = conduct and offences.

    Use it when: Telling the two Acts apart.

  • Four commissions

    1952, 1963, 1973, 2002.

    Use it when: Delimitation dates.

Election Commission of India, Election Laws and Delimitation: solved examples

Ordered from board level to HOTS. Try each one before you open the solution.

Example 1: Which Act? · 1 mark · MCQBoard level

Corrupt practices in elections are listed in:
(a) RPA 1950
(b) RPA 1951
(c) Article 82
(d) Article 324

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. RPA 1951 covers conduct, offences and corrupt practices (1 mark).

Answer: (b) RPA 1951

Example 2: ECI status (2 marks) · 2 marks · Very short answerBoard level

State the constitutional status of the Election Commission of India and the articles that provide for it. (2 marks)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. It is an autonomous, permanent constitutional body (1 mark).
  2. Articles 324-329 provide for it (1 mark).

Answer: The ECI is an autonomous and permanent constitutional body. Articles 324 to 329 of the Constitution provide for it.

Example 3: Delimitation (3 marks) · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level

What is delimitation? Why is it needed and who carries it out? (3 marks)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. Delimitation fixes the number of seats and the boundaries of constituencies in a State (1 mark).
  2. Needed because population changes; otherwise representatives would speak for very different numbers of people (1 mark).
  3. Carried out by a Delimitation Commission under Article 82 (1 mark).

Answer: Delimitation means fixing the number of seats and the boundaries of Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha constituencies so that the ratio of seats to population is as equal as possible. It is needed because population shifts, and without it one MP might represent far more people than another. A Delimitation Commission, provided for by Article 82, carries it out.

Example 4: Assertion-reason: SIR · 1 mark · Assertion-reasonHarder board level

Assertion (A): The Special Intensive Revision updates the electoral rolls.
Reason (R): Only people whose names are on the roll can vote.
(a) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.
(b) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A.
(c) A is true, but R is false.
(d) A is false, but R is true.

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. A is true: SIR updates, verifies and corrects the rolls.
  2. R is true and explains why the rolls must be accurate (1 mark).

Answer: (a) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.

Example 5: Free and fair elections (5 marks) · 5 marks · Long answerHOTS / competency

Explain how the Election Commission and the election laws together try to make elections free, fair and inclusive. (5 marks)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. The ECI has superintendence, direction and control of elections as an autonomous constitutional body (1 mark).
  2. It prepares and revises rolls (SIR), fixes the schedule and registers parties and symbols (1 mark).
  3. RPA 1950 covers seats, delimitation, rolls and the right of citizens aged 18 and above to vote without discrimination (1 mark).
  4. RPA 1951 governs conduct, offences and corrupt practices, such as gifts or appeals on grounds of religion or caste (1 mark).
  5. Inclusion tools: EVMs with Braille, home voting for those above 85 and persons with disabilities, cVIGIL, Saksham (1 mark).

Answer: The ECI is an autonomous, permanent constitutional body with superintendence, direction and control of elections. It prepares and revises electoral rolls, fixes the schedule and registers parties and symbols. The Representation of the People Act, 1950 provides for seats, delimitation, rolls and the right of all citizens aged 18 and above to vote. The Act of 1951 governs the conduct of elections and lists corrupt practices such as offering gifts or appealing to voters on grounds of religion, caste, race, community or language, and it provides for settling disputes after elections. The ECI also promotes inclusion through EVMs with Braille, home voting for those above 85 and persons with disabilities, and apps such as cVIGIL and Saksham. Together they protect fairness and access.

Example 6: Case: a campaign complaint · 4 marks · Case-basedHOTS / competency

Read the case and answer the questions.

During a campaign, a candidate's supporters distribute money to voters in a locality, saying it is "a thank-you in advance". Another candidate uses a police vehicle to take voters to a rally. A resident downloads an app and sends a photo of the money distribution; the ECI team reaches the spot within minutes.

(i) Which tool did the resident use? (1)
(ii) Under which Act are the two acts offences or corrupt practices? (1)
(iii) Explain how each act breaks the provisions of that Act. (2)

Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
  1. (i) cVIGIL (1 mark).
  2. (ii) RPA 1951 (1 mark).
  3. (iii) Money to influence voting is a gift, offer or promise to make someone vote; using police help is taking assistance from government personnel (2 marks).

Answer: (i) The cVIGIL app. (ii) The Representation of the People Act, 1951. (iii) Giving money to voters is a gift or offer to influence how they vote, and using a police vehicle means taking help from government personnel, both of which are listed as corrupt practices.

Where students lose marks in Election Commission of India, Election Laws and Delimitation

The slips examiners see most often, and what to write instead.

  • Mistake: Swapping the two Acts

    Similar numbers.

    Wrong working

    RPA 1951 prepares electoral rolls.

    Right working

    RPA 1950 covers rolls; RPA 1951 covers conduct and offences.

    Do this: Link 1950 with rolls.

    Usually costs: 1 mark.

  • Mistake: Calling the ECI a government department

    Missing the word "autonomous".

    Wrong working

    The ECI works under the Prime Minister.

    Right working

    The ECI is an autonomous, permanent constitutional body.

    Do this: Quote the status line.

    Usually costs: 1 mark.

  • Mistake: Delimitation as "creating new states"

    Misreading the word.

    Wrong working

    Delimitation creates states.

    Right working

    It fixes seats and boundaries of constituencies.

    Do this: Write the definition.

    Usually costs: 1 mark.

  • Mistake: Missing Article numbers

    Skipping details.

    Wrong working

    The ECI is in the Constitution.

    Right working

    Articles 324-329; delimitation under Article 82.

    Do this: Add one article.

    Usually costs: 1 mark.

Exam tips

  • Start any ECI answer with "autonomous, permanent constitutional body" and Articles 324-329.
  • Learn RPA 1950 as "rolls and seats" and RPA 1951 as "conduct and offences".
  • Match digital tools to their purpose in one line each; this is a common 1-mark item.
  • In case studies, quote the clue from the passage before naming the provision.

Practice questions on Election Commission of India, Election Laws and Delimitation

Write each answer on paper first. Open the hint only if you are stuck, and the answer only when you have finished.

  1. Q1 · 1 mark · MCQBoard level

    Which body do Articles 324-329 of the Constitution provide for?
    (a) The Delimitation Commission
    (b) The Election Commission
    (c) The Rajya Sabha
    (d) The Supreme Court

    Hint

    Autonomous and permanent.

    Answer

    (b) The Election Commission

  2. Q2 · 2 marks · Very short answerBoard level

    Give two functions of the Election Commission of India. (2 marks)

    Hint

    Rolls, schedule, symbols.

    Answer

    The ECI prepares and revises electoral rolls, and it registers political parties and allots symbols. It also decides the schedule of elections.

  3. Q3 · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level

    A student claims that the Act of 1950 governs nominations and campaigns. Is she right? Say which Act governs nominations and what the other Act covers. (3 marks)

    Hint

    Rolls vs conduct.

    Answer

    She is not right. Nominations, campaigns, voting and post-election disputes come under RPA 1951, which also lists electoral offences and corrupt practices. RPA 1950 deals with allocation of seats, delimitation of constituencies and preparation and revision of electoral rolls, and gives every citizen aged 18 and above the right to vote. RPA 1951 deals with conducting elections: nominations, campaigns, voting and post-election disputes, and it lists electoral offences and corrupt practices.

  4. Q4 · 1 mark · Assertion-reasonHarder board level

    Assertion (A): Constituency boundaries need to be redrawn from time to time.
    Reason (R): Population changes, and equal representation requires a similar ratio of seats to population.
    (a) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.
    (b) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A.
    (c) A is true, but R is false.
    (d) A is false, but R is true.

    Hint

    Think of 5 lakh vs 25 lakh.

    Answer

    (a) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A.

  5. Q5 · 5 marks · Long answerHarder board level

    Describe the work of the Election Commission in preparing the electoral rolls, including the Special Intensive Revision. (5 marks)

    Hint

    Enumerators, polling stations, additions, removals, claims.

    Answer

    Enumerators visit households and the rolls are prepared polling-station-wise; only listed people can vote. A Special Intensive Revision updates, verifies and corrects the rolls. It adds new voters, especially those who have just turned 18, and removes names for death, change of residence, duplication or being permanently untraceable. Claims and objections are settled before the final roll is published. Accurate rolls are essential because they decide who can vote and protect the principle of one person, one vote.

  6. Q6 · 3 marks · Short answerHOTS / competency

    Suppose a Delimitation Commission finds that one constituency in a State has three times the population of another. Explain what this means for equality and what the Commission may do. (3 marks)

    Hint

    Weight of a vote; Article 82.

    Answer

    A voter in the smaller constituency has a vote with three times the weight of a voter in the larger one, which breaks equal representation. The Commission, set up under Article 82, can fix the number of seats and redraw boundaries so that the ratio of seats to population is as equal as possible.

Test your recall

Answer in your head or on paper first, then open the card. Pulling an answer out of memory makes it stick far better than re-reading.

  1. 1.When was the Election Commission set up?Show answer

    25 January 1950.

  2. 2.Which article provides for a Delimitation Commission?Show answer

    Article 82.

  3. 3.Which Act lists corrupt practices?Show answer

    The Representation of the People Act, 1951.

  4. 4.What is cVIGIL used for?Show answer

    To report Model Code of Conduct violations.

  5. 5.Who supervises elections in a State?Show answer

    The Chief Electoral Officer.

Election Commission of India, Election Laws and Delimitation: frequently asked questions

What is the Election Commission of India?

An autonomous, permanent constitutional body that supervises elections to Parliament, State legislatures and the posts of President and Vice President.

What are the functions of the Election Commission?

Preparing electoral rolls, deciding election schedules, registering parties and allotting symbols, and ensuring free, fair and inclusive elections.

What is delimitation?

Fixing the number of seats and the boundaries of constituencies so that representation is as equal as possible.

What is the Special Intensive Revision?

A process that updates, verifies and corrects electoral rolls by adding new voters and removing ineligible names.