Chapter 37 : First General Elections

First General Elections

Constitutional Context

• November 26, 1949: Provisions of the Constitution relating to citizenship and Article 324 (the Election Commission) were brought into force.
• January 26, 1950: The rest of the Constitution came into force.
• India no longer had a dominion status and could sever remaining links with Britain.
• India became a sovereign democratic republic.
• Constitutional Provisions: The founding fathers incorporated electoral procedures directly into the Constitution under Part XV, Articles 324 to 329.
• Objective: The government sought to hold general elections to constitute the House of the People (Lok Sabha) as provided in the Constitution.

Key Terms

📌 Exam Tidbits

• Article 324 came into force earlier (November 26, 1949) than the bulk of the Constitution (January 26, 1950).

Groundwork for the Elections

The Election Commission

• January 25, 1950: The office of the Election Commission was set up in a small way.
• March 21, 1950: Sukumar Sen, an ICS officer, assumed office as the first Chief Election Commissioner of India.
• Nature of the Body: A permanent constitutional body, independent of the government of the day.

Legislation for Polls

• Parliament passed two major legislations to put the electoral machinery in place:

1. Representation of the People Act, 1950
2. Representation of the People Act, 1951

• Timeline Shift: The government initially hurried to hold elections by 1950, then by spring 1951, but the first phase could only begin on October 15, 1951.

Seat Distribution for the First Elections

Key Terms

📌 Exam Tidbits

• Sukumar Sen was the first Chief Election Commissioner (assumed office March 21, 1950).
• Total Lok Sabha seats to be filled by election: 489.