India’s election machinery received international recognition from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Tuesday. This statement followed US President Donald Trump’s reference to India’s voter card system in a discussion about domestic citizenship verification in the United States. The MEA emphasized the credibility and robustness of India’s electoral processes in response to Trump’s comments.
Making a strong case for stricter electoral laws in the US, Trump praised India’s electoral apparatus.
“I have no specific comments on these remarks. The US president made these remarks to drum up support for the SAVE America Act, which would require Americans to show proof of citizenship to register to vote, impose a nationwide voter identification requirement and severely limit voting by mail. Less than one per cent voted by mail, and every single Voter had to have a VALID Photo Identity Document. Trump has been insisting on passing the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act, claiming the move would curb electoral fraud.
In a social media post, Trump said over 646 million people participated in the recent general elections in India, and yet less than one per cent voted through postal ballots. “India’s last Election had 646,000,000 Voters!
I can say, however, that the credibility and robustness of India’s election machinery is a well-established fact globally,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at his bi-weekly media briefing. Trump said India’s chief election commissioner had spoken with officials from his administration earlier this month, and asked how US elections can be held without a valid photo identification card. “Earlier this month, India’s Chief Election Commissioner, Gyanesh Kumar, asked our Administration – How can you have Elections in the US without a valid Photo ID,” Trump wrote. “We need to pass THE SAVE AMERICA ACT, now,” he asserted.
