NRIs voting right bill to be introduced in budget session :Ravi

New Delhi, Jan 5 (UNI) Overseas Indians holding Indian passport will get voting right in the next few months.

Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi today said that a legislation for the purpose would be introduced in the Lok Sabha in the forthcoming Budget session of Parliament during February-March.

He said the proposal was only to grant voting right to Non-Resident Indians having Indian passport.

"Such NRIs would be enrolled in the voters' List and would be allowed to participate in the democratic election process in the world's largest democracy," he said.

Replying to a question at a press conference organised as part of the forthcoming Pravasi Bharatiya Divas during January 7-9, Mr Ravi said Indians holding passports of other countries would not be provided any political right. They had already been issued with Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) cards. The holders of this card would have enjoy any political rights.

Voting right in their country of birth has been the long pending demand of the 25 million strong Indian diaspora in 110 countries.

The legislation seeking to amend the People's Representation Act of 1951 to provide for voting right to the NRIs was introduced in the Rajya Sabha by Law Minister H R Bhardwaj a few months ago.

The bill was then referred to a Standing Committee of Parliament for detailed scrutiny. The Committee had already submitted its recommendations.

The final draft has already been finalised by the Law Ministry on the basis of the recommendations of the Parliamentary Committee.

He said his ministry had been discussing with the Netherlands and France to avoid double taxation. A treaty to this effect had already been signed with Belgium.

Mr Ravi said his ministry had completed negotiation with Kuwait with regard to a manpower agreement, a like of which it had already signed with the UAE.

He said the government had been negotiating a similar agreement with Qatar, Bahrain, Muscat and Saudi Arabi so that the Indian workers there are protected from exploitation by fraudulent agents in nexus with the sponsors in these Gulf countries.

UNI