Context: Booth capturing and bogus voting should be dealt with an iron hand, the Supreme Court of India held that in any election, be it to Parliament or State legislature, the maintenance of secrecy of voting is “a must”.
Background

• In past judgments of the Supreme Court, it is well laid out that election is a mechanism that represents the will of the people, and it is for this reason, democracy, and the free election has been said to be part of the basic structure of the Constitution.
• An important part of strengthening democracy and free election is by ensuring secrecy of casting vote,” the bench said, citing the 2013 judgment in Peoples Union of Civil Liberties case which held that freedom of voting is a part of the fundamental right of freedom of expression.
• Recently, It reiterated its 2013 judgement in the People's Union for Civil Liberties case.

Key Points

• The SC bench noted that election is a mechanism that represents the will of the people and democracy and free election have been said to be part of the basic structure of the Constitution.
• The essence of the electoral system should be to ensure freedom of voters to exercise their free choice. Therefore, any attempt at booth capturing, or bogus voting should be dealt with iron hands because it ultimately affects the rule of law and democracy.
• The bench said nobody can be permitted to dilute the right to a free and fair election. 

Judgement in People's Union for Civil Liberties case, 2013
The two main key components that came out of the Supreme Court judgment are

• Right to vote also includes a right not to vote i.e right to reject.
• Right to secrecy is an integral part of a free and fair election.
• Right to Reject: It implies that a voter while voting has every right not to opt for any of the candidates during an election.
• Such a right implies a choice to remain neutral. It has its genesis in freedom of speech and expression.

Introducing a ‘None of the Above’ (NOTA) button can increase the public participation in an electoral process.
Right to Secrecy

• It is a central right of an elector to cast his vote without fear of reprisal, duress or coercion as per Article 21 of the Indian Constitution.
• Protection of the elector's identity and affording secrecy is therefore integral to free and fair elections.
• An arbitrary distinction between the voter who casts his vote and the voter who does not cast his vote is violative of Article 14, Article 19(1)(a) and Article 21 of the Indian Constitution.
• Article 21(3) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 25(b) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights deals with the “Right to secrecy”.

Other Related Judgement

• Earlier, the SC held that the principle of secrecy of ballots is an important postulate of constitutional democracy and referred to Section 94 of the Representation of People Act (RPA) 1951.
• The section upholds the privilege of the voters to maintain confidentiality about their choice of the vote.