Universal Adult Suffrage in India

The right of the people to vote and elect their representatives is called franchise. Adult franchise means that
the right to vote should be given to all adult citizens without the discrimination of caste, class, colour, religion
or sex. It demands that the right to vote should be equally available among all. To deny any class of persons
from exercising this right is to violate their right to equality. the system of adult franchise is the bedrock of a
democratic system. People are called political sovereign because they possess the right to vote a government
into power, or to vote a government out of power

What does Universal Adult Suffrage mean?

The Article 326 of the Indian Constitution grants universal adult suffrage, according to which, every
adult citizen is entitled to cast his/her vote in all state elections unless that citizen is convicted of
certain criminal offences or deemed unsound of mind. As per this concept, the right to vote is not
restricted by caste, race, sex, religion or financial status.

Definition: Universal adult franchise basically means every citizen in a state has the right to
vote and participate in the election process regardless of his/her religion, caste, gender, sex,
etc. In India every citizen above the age of 18 has been given the right to vote.

Universal adult franchise enables all citizens to be involved in the governance of their state. They do so by
electing their representatives who govern to serve and protect the interests of the people.

Article 326
Elections to the House of the People and to the Legislative Assemblies of States to be on the basis of adult
suffrage. The elections to the House of the People and to the Legislative Assembly of every State shall be
on the basis of adult suffrage; that is to say, every person who is a citizen of India and who is not less
than eighteen years of age on such date as may be fixed in that behalf by or under any law made by the
appropriate Legislature and is not otherwise disqualified under this Constitution or any law made by the
appropriate Legislature on the ground of non-residence, unsoundness of mind, crime or corrupt or illegal
practice, shall be entitled to be registered as a voter at any such election.
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Contents [hide]
Evolution
World context
Evolution
Developments Leading to Adoption of Universal Adult Suffrage

During the pre-independence era, only 13 per cent of Indian citizens used to enjoy the right to vote.
The demand for universal adult suffrage had been gaining momentum few decades prior to the
independence. The Motilal Nehru report was among the first proponent of unlimited adult franchise
and equal rights for women.
 It was in 1928 when Dr B.R. Ambedkar appeared before the Simon Commission and insisted on
incorporating universal adult franchise in the Constitution of India. According to him, elections were
a weapon in the hands of the most oppressed sections of society and voting rights will give them
the politico-legal equality. Ambedkar found a like-minded colleague in Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, who
also subscribed to his liberal views.

Later, the Indian National Congress called for political equality at the 1931 Karachi session. The
party argued that it would be one of the crucial strides towards making the electoral process more
participatory and inclusive. There were doubts in the minds of our constitution makers and the issue
of adult franchise was debated in the Constituent Assembly by many senior leaders before it
abolished all the previous restrictions and provided for universal adult suffrage.

Paradoxically, our Constitution which provides for Universal adult suffrage was drafted by a
Constituent Assembly that was composed of members elected by restricted franchise.
The Motilal Nehru report of 1928 advocated unlimited adult franchise and equal rights for women.
The resolution of the 1931 Karachi session of the Indian National Congress adopted a resolution on
Fundamental Rights and Economic Policy which encapsulated the notion of universal adult franchise.
India adopted the principle of universal adult franchise when the present Constitution was enacted in
1949 which as you know was implemented on January 26, 1950.
Read from Social and Political life III CLASS VIII NCERT for evolution
World context
The western countries, which are known for their long experience of some sort of representative
system of governance, introduced adult franchise only in the wake of the First World War (1914 18), a war
which was proclaimed to be fought by the Allied Powers (Great Britain, France and United States and the
allies) to make the world safe for democracy.
The defeated Germany incorporated the principle of universal adult franchise in 1919, it took nine
more years for Great Britain to Democracy at Work extend franchise to women in 1928. In 1918, Britain had
granted franchise to limited number of women. It was decided that while all adult men, 21 years of age and
above would have the right to vote, women only above the age of 30 years could possess the right to vote.
This discrimination was removed only in 1928.
France, the land that gave the popular slogans of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity, could introduce the
right of universal adult franchise to its people only after the end of the Second World War i.e. 1945.

Switzerland, the home of direct democracy denied the right to vote to women till 1973.

India adopted the principle of universal adult franchise when the present Constitution was enacted in
1949 which as you know was implemented on January 26, 1950.

Age of voting across the world

The voting age varies from country to country.
 In Denmark and Japan, a person, man or woman, is entitled to vote after attaining the age of 25
years.
In Norway, the age limit is 23, in Great Britain, the United States, Russia and Turkey it is 18.
In Switzerland, it is 20 years.
In our country, now the minimum age for exercising franchise is 18 years. The 61st Amendment Act
lowered the voting age from 21 to 18 years.

Importance of Universal Adult Suffrage

The introduction of universal adult suffrage is considered one of the most important decisions that
changed India for the better. Granting voting rights to all is no mean achievement for the founding
fathers of Indian Constitution, especially Dr B.R. Ambedkar. It provided the government with
unchallengeable legitimacy against any military intervention or secessionist movements.
Besides achieving gender equality by giving women the right to vote, it eliminated untouchability
and ensured equal opportunities for backward class people as well.

The concept of universal adult suffrage along with free and fair voting are looked upon as the
guarantors of minority rights. It also had a trickle-down impact on poverty alleviation. By
allowing voting rights to all citizens, the poor found an opportunity to choose the political
administrators and increase the scope of governance at a local level. The direct outcome is
prosperity at grassroots level and development of infrastructure.

Another significant transformation that has become evident over the years is the representation of
backward sections in Parliament. The composition of the members of Parliament has changed to
include individuals from those communities, who become the voice of the oppressed.

Q. Why did India the concept of universal adult suffrage? Has it succeeded?
Discuss the role of Election Commission in implementing universal adult
suffrage concept.

Q. Critically analyse the working of democracy in India since independence.

Q. Indias democratic experiment is largely hailed as a success. To which

factors do you attribute this success? What else needs to be done to address
some of the problems affecting Indias democratic system? Discuss.