A growing number of companies are allowing shareholders to cast their votes online. Here's how you stand to benefit from this new facility

Reliance Industrial Infrastructure will have its annual general meeting on 2 July. If you don't want to travel to Mumbai, but still want to be heard, and rightfully so, you can exercise your rights even before the AGM gets underway. Between 26 and 29 June, RIIL shareholders will have the opportunity to cast their votes online on all proposed resolutions. More and more companies are tying up with online agencies to provide e-voting facility to their shareholders.

Now, all you have to do is to point and click from within the comforts of your home to be a part of the decision making process.

To another city where the meeting is being held to cast their vote. e-Voting is an electronic system where shareholders can vote on resolutions in electronic form. You have to log on to a secure online platform by using a unique ID and cast your vote.

In June 2012, Sebi had made it mandatory for the top 500 listed companies to facilitate e-voting for all resolutions that demand postal ballots in accordance with the Companies Act or other relevant regulations. Come 1 October, all listed companies will be required to provide this facility. Experts say shareholders must make most of this opportunity. "The mechanism makes it so much more easy for investors to cast their votes. There is no reason why shareholders should not exercise their rights now, highly empowering system and insists retail investors should participate.

With this facility, the access available to the shareholder is very high. The facility is available to those holding

How e-voting works Shareholders need not register for eVoting. If your email id is in the records of the issuer or agent, you will automatically receive an email from the depository. It will contain the user ID and password for logging into the online portal. If your email ID is not available with them, the login details will be dispatched to your address in a PIN mailer.

All you have to do is to login to the portal using these details. At the first login attempt, you will be prompted to change the password. Then you will be asked to select the company you hold shares in. Once you enter the voting section, you will be able to cast your votes against each resolution, to the extent of the total voting rights (shares) you hold. Each resolution will be accompanied by a choice: 'for', 'against' and 'abstain'. You can vote on all or select topics. You can also split votes, 'for' or 'against', a resolution in any proportion within the total voting rights held by

However, votes once cast cannot be modified and will be considered final. At the end of the voting period, the scrutinizer will collate the votes downloaded from the e-voting system and the votes received from other sources to declare the final results. The results of the voting will be declared within two days after the resolution is passed at the company's shareholder meeting.