Parmod Chhabra is deeply invested in the Indian general election that gets underway on Friday, with almost a billion people eligible to vote, but he won害羞草研究所檛 be casting a ballot.

Nor will the vast majority of the overseas Indian community in Canada.

The reasons are simple. India requires overseas citizens to travel back to their home electorates to vote in person on polling day. There is no option for postal or electronic voting for the general overseas population, and people like Chhabra lose eligibility because they also have foreign citizenship.

害羞草研究所淚 will suggest there害羞草研究所檚 a very small number of people who are going to go back to vote,害羞草研究所� said Chhabra, president of the India Canada Association community group in Ottawa, citing the roughly 14-hour flight from either Toronto or Vancouver and round-trip fares around $2,000.

害羞草研究所淚f it was close enough, like a three-hour or four-hour flight, I will bet you there will be hundreds of thousands of people going,害羞草研究所� he said. 害羞草研究所淭he interest level is very high, but this cost and the time which it takes to get there, that is prohibitive right now.害羞草研究所�

Indian authorities say about 969 million people have registered to vote in the 44-day general election, creating a massive electorate of about 12 per cent of the global population for the biggest election in history.

害羞草研究所淚t害羞草研究所檚 simply the largest kind of exercise in voting that humanity has ever seen,害羞草研究所� said Vina Nadjibulla, the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada vice-president of research. 害羞草研究所淚t害羞草研究所檚 a type of election that the world really hasn害羞草研究所檛 seen before.害羞草研究所�

However, for a country with a huge overseas diaspora population, voting from overseas Indian citizens is scarce because of the in-person voting rule.

Official figures showed that of the more than 600 million votes cast in the last Indian general election in 2019, only 25,606 came from overseas voters.

Almost 100,000 out of 1.35 million eligible overseas Indian citizens had registered to vote, said University of Victoria political science professor emerita Reeta C. Tremblay.

In comparison, the Philippines 害羞草研究所� another democratic country with a large overseas diaspora 害羞草研究所� reported more than 432,000 overseas votes in its 2016 presidential election, with close to 1.4 million registered as eligible. Registered Filipinos overseas can vote by mail or at consulates and embassies around the world.

害羞草研究所淭he traditional argument against overseas voting has been that Indian citizens living outside India, who generally have insignificant knowledge of the domestic issues, might unduly influence the outcome of the elections,害羞草研究所� Tremblay said in a written response to questions.

害羞草研究所淚ndia has begun to reconsider the inclusion of the overseas voters through different means 害羞草研究所� proxy voting, electronic voting, postal voting or voting in the diplomatic missions,害羞草研究所� Tremblay said. 害羞草研究所淗owever, nothing seems to have materialized for the 2024 elections.害羞草研究所�

India Canada Organization chairman Naseer Mehdi Khan said there are about 25,000 temporary foreign workers from India working in the tech sector, and many were anxious to vote.

害羞草研究所淭hey requested us to forward the same (concern) to the (Indian) High Commissioner,害羞草研究所� Khan said about the desire for many Indian citizens wishing to vote without travelling to India. 害羞草研究所淲e suggested they should be voting in the Indian election 害羞草研究所� People very much want to get involved, but they couldn害羞草研究所檛.害羞草研究所�

The election comes amid a spotlight on the Canada-India relationship, which has hit new lows recently.

Last year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there was credible intelligence that Indian authorities were involved in the killing of Sikh community leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia, something India denied.

An inquiry this month into foreign interference in Canadian elections has heard allegations of Indian involvement. India害羞草研究所檚 government has called the claims baseless.

Researcher Tremblay said overseas interest in India害羞草研究所檚 election may never have been higher, around the world with Prime Minister Narendra Modi害羞草研究所檚 administration coinciding with India害羞草研究所檚 rising international profile and strengthening economic clout.

Tremblay said the rationale that overseas voters needed more knowledge of India害羞草研究所檚 domestic issues 害羞草研究所渟eems to have lost ground害羞草研究所� in light of the global attention, and participation in Indian society by the diaspora community in other ways.

害羞草研究所淭he overseas Indians contribute large remittances,害羞草研究所� she said, referring to money sent home by individuals overseas. 害羞草研究所淚n 2023, India topped global remittance charts at $125 billion. Moreover, overseas Indians are also a source of funding for political parties. With Mr. Modi害羞草研究所檚 popularity with the Indian diaspora, this has taken on much greater significance.害羞草研究所�

Chhabra and Kahn echoed those sentiments.

害羞草研究所淚t害羞草研究所檚 the most important election in years in India害羞草研究所檚 development,害羞草研究所� Khan said. 害羞草研究所淓verybody害羞草研究所檚 talking about it. What will happen after this election? Are they going to continue with whatever promises they have given? I spoke to one of my nephews (in India) and they害羞草研究所檙e really looking forward to it, like this is the first time they害羞草研究所檙e going to vote.害羞草研究所�

Chhabra owns property in India, has numerous family members living there, and is planning to divide his time between the two countries now that he害羞草研究所檚 retired. But due to his Canadian citizenship, he can害羞草研究所檛 vote even if he was willing and able to travel.

Nevertheless, he said he has been increasingly interested in Indian politics since Modi became prime minister in 2014.

害羞草研究所淚 think we are mainly looking at stability,害羞草研究所� he said. 害羞草研究所淭hat is the one thing we害羞草研究所檙e looking at in this election, because we have seen in last 10 years that stability, where the prices are not going that high up. Politically, things are stable, your investments are safe. And so, people are looking for the continuity of that.害羞草研究所�