Section 131: Penalty for disorderly conduct in or near polling stations
Section 131 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 restricts loudspeakers, shouting and other disorderly conduct at or near a polling station on polling day. Its purpose is to protect voters from annoyance and enable election personnel to perform their duties without interference.
What Section 131 prohibits
On the date or dates when polling takes place at a polling station, subsection (1) prohibits the following conduct within or at its entrance, or in a public or private place in its neighbourhood:
- Section 131(1)(a): Using or operating equipment that amplifies or reproduces the human voice, including a megaphone or loudspeaker.
- Section 131(1)(b): Shouting or otherwise acting in a disorderly manner so as to annoy a person visiting the polling station to vote or interfere with the work of officers and others on polling duty.
Unlike Section 130, which expressly prescribes a distance of 100 metres for specified canvassing restrictions, Section 131 uses the words in the neighbourhood thereof. The two provisions should not be treated as having identical geographical wording.
Section 131: statutory provisions
Subsection (1) - Prohibited conduct
No person shall, on the date or dates on which a poll is taken at any polling station:
(a) use or operate within or at the entrance of the polling station, or in any public or private place in the neighbourhood thereof, any apparatus for amplifying or reproducing the human voice, such as a megaphone or a loudspeaker; or
(b) shout, or otherwise act in a disorderly manner, within or at the entrance of the polling station or in any public or private place in the neighbourhood thereof, so as to cause annoyance to any person visiting the polling station for the poll, or so as to interfere with the work of the officers and other persons on duty at the polling station.
Subsection (2) - Punishment
A person who contravenes, or wilfully aids or abets the contravention of, subsection (1) is punishable with imprisonment extending to three months, or with fine, or with both. The section does not specify a fixed maximum fine.
Subsection (3) - Arrest on presiding officer's direction
If the presiding officer has reason to believe that a person is committing or has committed an offence under Section 131, the presiding officer may direct a police officer to arrest that person; the police officer shall then arrest the person.
Subsection (4) - Preventive action and seizure
A police officer may take steps and use force reasonably necessary to prevent a breach of subsection (1), and may seize apparatus used in the contravention.
How the law operates in practice
Examples include operating a loudspeaker beside the polling station entrance on polling day, shouting at voters arriving to cast their votes, or creating a disturbance that prevents polling staff from carrying out their assigned work. Whether a particular act falls within Section 131 depends on its location, timing and the statutory elements of the prohibited conduct.
Wilful assistance is also punishable: Subsection (2) expressly covers a person who wilfully aids or abets a contravention. The statute is therefore not confined to the individual physically using a loudspeaker or shouting.
Police powers have limits: The force used under subsection (4) must be reasonably necessary to prevent a breach. The authority to seize apparatus concerns equipment used in the contravention.
Related election offences
Section 130 separately prohibits canvassing and certain election-related signs within a specified 100-metre zone on polling day. Section 132 addresses misconduct at the polling station and disobedience of lawful directions of the presiding officer. Depending on the facts, different provisions may need separate consideration.
Frequently asked questions
What is the punishment under Section 131?
Imprisonment for up to three months, or a fine, or both. No numerical ceiling for the fine is stated in this section.
Can police arrest a person for disorderly conduct?
Under subsection (3), where the presiding officer has reason to believe the offence is being or has been committed, the officer may direct a police officer to arrest the person.
Can a loudspeaker be seized?
Yes. Subsection (4) permits seizure of apparatus used to contravene subsection (1), alongside reasonably necessary preventive steps.
Does Section 131 prescribe a 100-metre radius?
No. It refers to the polling station, its entrance and its neighbourhood. The 100-metre rule appears in Section 130 for specified canvassing activities.
Official legal resources
For authoritative statutory text, amendments and election instructions, consult India Code, the Legislative Department and the Election Commission of India. The statutory text and applicable election instructions should be checked for the particular election.