India became independent in 1947 but didn't hold its first election until 1951. (Representational)
The 2024 Lok Sabha elections are underway, with voting for the first two phases already concluded and five more to go. Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament, has 543 elected representatives, but it can have up to 550 members. The term of the Lok Sabha is typically five years from the date of its first meeting unless dissolved earlier. However, during a state of emergency, Parliament can extend its term by law for up to one year at a time, not exceeding six months beyond the end of the emergency proclamation.
Now let's look back at the first Lok Sabha elections held after India gained Independence.
India became independent in 1947 but didn't hold its first election until 1951. During this time, it was a constitutional monarchy under King George VI, with Louis Mountbatten as the Governor-General. Jawaharlal Nehru led the Constituent Assembly, which acted as the Parliament until the first elected government took charge.
First Lok Sabha elections
The first Lok Sabha elections were held for over four months from October 25, 1951, to February 21, 1952, marking the beginning of India's democratic journey after Independence from British rule.
With 176 million eligible voters, most of whom couldn't read, the elections showed a huge faith in democracy. Jawaharlal Nehru campaigned across the country for the Congress Party and his slogan “Naya Hindustan Zindabad” captured the spirit of the new era. Mr Nehru's vision of a new and progressive nation resonated with the people.
One-sixth of the world's population was going to vote at the time, making it the largest democratic exercise of the time. Given the power to elect its leaders for the first time, the Indian electorate voted for 489 Lok Sabha seats and 3,283 state Assembly seats. The election was held in 68 phases. Around 196,084 polling booths were set up. Of these, 27,527 booths were reserved exclusively for women.
Parties in the first Lok Sabha elections
There were about 1,874 candidates from 53 different political parties, including 14 national parties. Some of them were –
1. Indian National Congress led by Jawaharlal Nehru
2. The Socialist Party led Jayaprakash Narayan
3. Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party (KMPP) led by J B Kripalani
4. Communist Party of India (CPI)
5. Akhil Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS), the predecessor of the BJP
6. Hindu Maha Sabha (HMS)
7. Akhil Bharatiya Ram Rajya Parishad (RRP)
8. Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP)
First Lok Sabha election results
In the 1951 Lok Sabha elections, the Indian National Congress registered a landslide victory, securing 364 seats with 45% of the total votes cast. Jawaharlal Nehru made history by becoming India's first Prime Minister. The Communist Party of India became the primary opposition after winning 16 seats.
Challenges leading up to the first Lok Sabha election
India's leaders began planning for elections in July 1948, but there were no laws on how to conduct them. The Drafting Committee, led by Dr BR Ambedkar worked hard to draft the Constitution, which was ratified on November 26, 1949, and came into effect on January 26, 1950, marking India's transition to a republic.
With the Constitution in place, the Election Commission was formed, led by Sukumar Sen, the first Chief Election Commissioner. Jawaharlal Nehru was aiming to hold the first election in the spring of 1951, but organising such a massive election was not easy.
Identifying, naming and registering voters was a major challenge. So was finalising parliamentary constituencies based on census data. They also had to design party symbols, ballot papers and boxes for the illiterate population. Polling stations had to be built and staffed with trained officers. There were also food shortages in many states at the time which required government attention, diverting resources from election preparations.
Despite these challenges, 45.7% of eligible voters voted, marking India's emergence as the world's largest democracy.