The elections were conducted under the provisions of the constitution adopted on 26 November 1949. After the adoption of the constitution, the Constituent Assembly continued to act as the interim parliament, while an interim cabinet was headed by Jawaharlal Nehru. An Election Commission was created in 1949 and in March 1950 Sukumar Sen was appointed as the first Chief Election Commissioner. A month later parliament passed the Representation of the People Act which set out how the elections for parliament and state legislatures would be conducted.[5] The 489 seats of the Lok Sabha were allotted across 401 constituencies in 25 states. There were 314 constituencies electing one member using the first-past-the-post system. 86 constituencies elected two members, one from the general category and one from Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes. There was one constituency with three elected representatives.[6] The multi-seat constituencies were created as reserved seats for backward sections of society, and were abolished in the 1960s. The constitution at this time also provided for two Anglo-Indian members to be nominated by the President of India.
A total of 1,949 candidates competed for 489 seats in the Lok Sabha. Each candidate was allotted a different coloured ballot box at the polling booth, on which the candidate's name and symbol were written. 16,500 clerks were appointed on a contract of six months to type and collate the electorate rolls and 380,000 reams of paper were used for printing the rolls.[7] A total of 173,212,343 voters were registered (excluding Jammu and Kashmir) out of a population of 361,088,090 according to the 1951 census, making it the largest election conducted at the time. All Indian citizens over the age of 21 were eligible to vote.
Due to the harsh climate and challenging logistics, the election was held in 68 phases.[8] A total of 196,084 polling booths were set up, of which 27,527 booths were reserved for women. The majority of voting took place in early 1952, but Himachal Pradesh voted in 1951 as its weather was commonly inclement in February and March, with heavy snow impending free movement.[9] The remainder of states voted in February–March 1952, except for Jammu & Kashmir, where no voting took place for Lok Sabha seats until 1967. The first votes of the election were cast in the tehsil (district) of Chini in Himachal Pradesh.[10]
The result was a landslide victory for the Indian National Congress (INC), which received 45% of the vote and won 364 of the 489 seats. The second-placed Socialist Party received only 11% of the vote and won twelve seats. Jawaharlal Nehru became the first democratically elected Prime Minister of the country.
The speaker of the first Lok Sabha was Ganesh Vasudev Mavalankar. The first Lok Sabha also witnessed 677 sittings (3,784 hours), the highest recorded count of the number of sitting hours. The Lok Sabha lasted its full term from 17 April 1952 until 4 April 1957.
Notable lossesedit
First Law Minister B. R. Ambedkar was defeated in the Bombay (North Central)[14] constituency as Scheduled Castes Federation candidate by his little-known former assistant and Congress Candidate Narayan Sadoba Kajrolkar, who polled 1,38,137 votes compared to Ambedkar's 1,23,576 votes.[10]: 156 Ambedkar then entered the parliament as a Rajya Sabha member. He contested a by-poll from Bhandara in 1954 in another attempt to enter the Lok Sabha, but again lost to Borkar of Congress.
^"How India pulled off its first general election". The Indian Express. 12 April 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
^"Lok Sabha polls 2024 to have longest voting period since first general elections". The Times of India. 16 March 2024. from the original on 17 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
^"Voting Period Of 2024 Lok Sabha Polls Longest Since First General Elections". from the original on 17 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
^"Elections that shaped India | The first general elections: a free country in full bloom". The Hindu. 28 March 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
^Guha, Ramachandra (2022). India after Gandhi: the history of the world's largest democracy (10th anniversary edition, updated and expanded, first published in hardcover ed.). New Delhi: Picador India. ISBN978-93-82616-97-9.
^(PDF). Election Commission of India. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 October 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2010.
^Pareek, Shabdita (25 January 2016). "This Is How The First General Elections Were Held in Independent India". ScoopWhoop. from the original on 21 December 2018. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
^"Interesting Facts About India's First General Elections". indiatimes.com. 28 April 2014. from the original on 21 December 2018. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
^India's first voter in Himachal Pradesh 6 July 2017 at the Wayback Machine, by Gautam Dhmeer, in the Deccan Herald; published 30 October 2012; retrieved 7 April 2014
^ abRamachandra Guha (2008). India After Gandhi: The History of the World's Largest Democracy. Harper Collins. ISBN978-0-06-095858-9.
^"First general elections in India: All you need to know". India Today. 10 February 2016. from the original on 21 July 2021. Retrieved 21 December 2018.
^Varshney, Ashutosh. 28 March 2015. "Faults and lines 16 December 2018 at the Wayback Machine." The Indian Express. Retrieved on 16 June 2020.
^"(reserved seat)". from the original on 16 February 2016. Retrieved 26 January 2016.
^David Gilmartin (2014). "Chapter 5: The paradox of patronage and the people's sovereignty". In Anastasia Pivliavsky (ed.). Patronage as Politics in South Asia. Cambridge University Press. pp. 151–152. ISBN978-1-107-05608-4.
Further readingedit
Guha, Ramachandra. "Democracy's Biggest Gamble", World Policy Journal, (Spring 2002) 19#1 pp. 95–103
May 08, 2024
1951, indian, general, election, general, elections, were, held, india, between, october, 1951, february, 1952, first, after, india, attained, independence, 1947, voters, elected, members, first, sabha, lower, house, parliament, india, elections, most, state, . General elections were held in India between 25 October 1951 and 21 February 1952 the first after India attained independence in 1947 1 2 3 Voters elected the 489 members of the first Lok Sabha the lower house of the Parliament of India Elections to most of the state legislatures were held simultaneously 4 1951 52 Indian general election 1945 25 October 1951 21 February 1952 1957 489 of the 499 seats in the Lok Sabha245 seats needed for a majorityRegistered173 212 343Turnout44 87 First party Second party Third party Leader Jawaharlal Nehru Ajoy Ghosh Narendra Deva Party INC CPI Socialist Seats won 364 16 12 Popular vote 47 665 951 3 487 401 11 216 719 Percentage 44 99 3 29 10 59 Prime Minister before election Jawaharlal Nehru INC Prime Minister after election Jawaharlal Nehru INC The elections were conducted under the provisions of the constitution adopted on 26 November 1949 After the adoption of the constitution the Constituent Assembly continued to act as the interim parliament while an interim cabinet was headed by Jawaharlal Nehru An Election Commission was created in 1949 and in March 1950 Sukumar Sen was appointed as the first Chief Election Commissioner A month later parliament passed the Representation of the People Act which set out how the elections for parliament and state legislatures would be conducted 5 The 489 seats of the Lok Sabha were allotted across 401 constituencies in 25 states There were 314 constituencies electing one member using the first past the post system 86 constituencies elected two members one from the general category and one from Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes There was one constituency with three elected representatives 6 The multi seat constituencies were created as reserved seats for backward sections of society and were abolished in the 1960s The constitution at this time also provided for two Anglo Indian members to be nominated by the President of India A total of 1 949 candidates competed for 489 seats in the Lok Sabha Each candidate was allotted a different coloured ballot box at the polling booth on which the candidate s name and symbol were written 16 500 clerks were appointed on a contract of six months to type and collate the electorate rolls and 380 000 reams of paper were used for printing the rolls 7 A total of 173 212 343 voters were registered excluding Jammu and Kashmir out of a population of 361 088 090 according to the 1951 census making it the largest election conducted at the time All Indian citizens over the age of 21 were eligible to vote Due to the harsh climate and challenging logistics the election was held in 68 phases 8 A total of 196 084 polling booths were set up of which 27 527 booths were reserved for women The majority of voting took place in early 1952 but Himachal Pradesh voted in 1951 as its weather was commonly inclement in February and March with heavy snow impending free movement 9 The remainder of states voted in February March 1952 except for Jammu amp Kashmir where no voting took place for Lok Sabha seats until 1967 The first votes of the election were cast in the tehsil district of Chini in Himachal Pradesh 10 The result was a landslide victory for the Indian National Congress INC which received 45 of the vote and won 364 of the 489 seats The second placed Socialist Party received only 11 of the vote and won twelve seats Jawaharlal Nehru became the first democratically elected Prime Minister of the country Contents 1 Contesting parties 2 Results 2 1 Results by state 2 1 1 Assam 2 1 2 Bihar 2 1 3 Bombay 2 1 4 Madhya Pradesh 2 1 5 Madras 2 1 6 Orissa 2 1 7 Punjab 2 1 8 Uttar Pradesh 2 1 9 West Bengal 2 1 10 Hyderabad 2 1 11 Madhya Bharat 2 1 12 Mysore 2 1 13 Patiala and East Punjab States Union 2 1 14 Rajasthan 2 1 15 Saurashtra 2 1 16 Travancore Cochin 2 1 17 Ajmer 2 1 18 Bhopal 2 1 19 Bislaspur 2 1 20 Coorg 2 1 21 Delhi 2 1 22 Himachal Pradesh 2 1 23 Kutch 2 1 24 Manipur 2 1 25 Tripura 2 1 26 Vindhya Pradesh 3 Government formation 4 Notable losses 5 See also 6 References 7 Further readingContesting parties editA total of 53 parties and 533 independents contested the 489 seats 11 Several ministers resigned from their posts and formed their own parties to contest the elections Syama Prasad Mukherjee established the Jana Sangh in October 1951 and Law Minister B R Ambedkar revived the Scheduled Castes Federation which was later named the Republican Party Congress party president Purushottam Das Tandon resigned from his post because of differences with Nehru 12 13 Other parties which started coming to the forefront included the Kisan Mazdoor Praja Parishad whose prime mover was Acharya Kripalani the Socialist Party led by Ram Manohar Lohia and Jayaprakash Narayan and the Communist Party of India However these smaller parties were unable to make an electoral stand against the Indian National Congress Results edit nbsp PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress47 665 95144 99364Socialist Party11 216 71910 5912Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party6 135 9785 799Communist Party of India3 487 4013 2916Bharatiya Jana Sangh3 246 3613 063Scheduled Castes Federation2 521 6952 382Akhil Bharatiya Ram Rajya Parishad2 091 8981 973Krishikar Lok Party1 489 6151 411People s Democratic Front1 367 4041 297Shiromani Akali Dal1 047 6110 994Hindu Mahasabha1 003 0340 954Peasants and Workers Party of India992 1870 942Forward Bloc Marxist 963 0580 911All India Ganatantra Parishad959 7490 916Tamil Nadu Toilers Party889 2920 844Jharkhand Party749 7020 713Revolutionary Socialist Party468 1080 443Commonweal Party325 3980 313Lok Sewak Sangh309 9400 292Zamindar Party291 3000 270Chota Nagpur Santhal Parganas Janata Party236 0940 221Uttar Pradesh Praja Party213 6560 200S K Paksha137 3430 130All India Forward Bloc Ruikar 133 9360 130Kamgar Kisan Paksha132 5740 130Tribal Sangha116 6290 110Travancore Tamil Nadu Congress115 8930 111Kerala Socialist Party102 0980 100Indian Union Muslim League79 4700 081Revolutionary Communist Party of India67 2750 060Justice Party63 2540 060All India United Kisan Sabha60 2540 060All India Republican Party RPP 57 8150 050All India Republican Party REP 44 2860 040All People s Party36 8510 030Tamil Nadu Congress Party36 1580 030Khasi Jaintia Durbar32 9870 030Saurashtra Khedut Sangh29 7660 030Bolshevik Party of India25 7920 020All Manipur National Union22 0830 020Uttar Pradesh Revolutionary Socialist Party20 6650 020Hill People Party17 3500 020Praja Party16 9550 020Kuki National Association12 1550 010Punjab Depressed Class League11 7890 010Pursharathi Panchayat10 7780 010Cochin Party8 9470 010Kisan Mazdoor Mandal8 8080 010Hyderabad State Praja Party7 6460 010Gandhi Sebak Seva7 1960 010Kisan Janta Sanyukta Party6 3900 010National Party of India3 2320 000Historical Research1 4680 000Independents16 850 08915 9037Appointed members a 10Total105 950 083100 00499Registered voters turnout173 212 34344 87Source ECI Six representing Jammu and Kashmir two representing Anglo Indians one representing Part B tribal areas in Assam and one representing the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Results by state edit State Totalseats Seats won INC CPI SPI KMPP PDF GP BJS RRP SCF KLP Others Ind App Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1 1 Assam 13 11 1 1 Ajmer 2 2 Bhopal 2 2 Bihar 55 45 3 6 1 Bilaspur 1 1 Bombay 45 40 1 1 3 Coorg 1 1 Delhi 4 3 1 Himachal Pradesh 3 3 Hyderabad 25 14 1 7 1 1 1 Jammu and Kashmir 6 6 Kutch 2 2 Madhya Bharat 11 9 2 Madhya Pradesh 29 27 2 Madras 75 35 8 2 6 9 15 Manipur 2 1 1 Mysore 11 10 1 Orissa 20 11 1 1 6 1 PEPSU 5 2 2 1 Punjab 18 16 2 Rajasthan 20 9 1 3 1 6 Saurashtra 6 6 Travancore Cochin 12 6 2 4 Tripura 2 2 Uttar Pradesh 86 81 2 1 2 Vindhya Pradesh 6 4 1 1 West Bengal 34 21 5 2 3 Anglo Indians 2 2 Total 499 364 16 12 9 7 6 3 3 2 1 29 37 10 Source ECI Assam edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress1 210 70745 7411Socialist Party506 94319 151Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party265 68710 040Independents363 67013 740Other parties300 12011 340Total2 647 127100 0012 Bihar edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress4 573 05845 7745Socialist Party2 126 06621 283Jharkhand Party749 7027 503Lok Sewak Sangh309 9403 102Chota Nagpur Santhal Parganas Janata Party236 0942 361Independents1 306 66013 081Other parties690 9316 910Total9 992 451100 0055 Bombay edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress5 781 27750 1540Independents1 380 48411 973Peasants and Workers Party of India807 0197 001Scheduled Caste Federation511 0284 431Socialist Party1 682 49414 590Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party639 7885 550Other parties726 2006 300Total11 528 290100 0045 Madhya Pradesh edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress3 713 53751 6327Independents858 40711 932Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party451 7496 280Akhil Bharatiya Ram Rajya Parishad396 6615 510Socialist Party877 39212 200Other parties894 84512 440Total7 192 591100 0029 Madras edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress7 253 45236 3935Independents4 614 21023 1515Communist Party of India1 783 4078 958Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party1 952 1979 796Tamil Nadu Toilers Party889 2924 464Commonweal Party325 3981 633Socialist Party1 055 4235 292Forward Bloc Marxist Group 332 1961 671Indian Union Muslim League79 4700 401Other parties1 649 1168 270Total19 934 161100 0075 Orissa edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress1 555 78742 5111All India Ganatantra Parishad959 74926 236Socialist Party563 46215 401Communist Party of India211 3035 771Independents316 5388 651Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party52 6541 440Total3 659 493100 0020 Punjab edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress2 134 58642 7616Shiromani Akali Dal569 97311 422Zamindar Party291 3005 830Bharatiya Jana Sangh279 6395 600Communist Party of India251 6235 040Independents930 38318 640Other parties534 83410 710Total4 992 338100 0018 Uttar Pradesh edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress9 047 39252 9981Socialist Party2 208 67812 942Independents1 936 38311 342Hindu Mahasabha325 6011 911Bharatiya Jana Sangh1 244 0997 290Other parties2 312 82213 550Total17 074 975100 0086 West Bengal edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress3 205 16242 1024Communist Party of India720 3049 465Bharatiya Jana Sangh452 2795 942Revolutionary Socialist Party183 0052 402Hindu Mahasabha324 8704 271Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party679 1498 920Independents1 405 74718 460Other parties643 4178 450Total7 613 933100 0034 Hyderabad edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress1 945 79840 0814People s Democratic Front1 367 40428 177Socialist Party651 31613 421Scheduled Caste Federation308 5916 361Peasants and Workers Party of India185 1683 811Independents388 9398 011Hyderabad State Praja Party7 6460 160Total4 854 862100 0025 Madhya Bharat edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress992 15950 799Hindu Mahasabha122 2136 262Akhil Bharatiya Ram Rajya Parishad278 47514 250Socialist Party268 39913 740Bharatiya Jana Sangh188 5699 650Other parties103 7565 310Total1 953 571100 0011 Mysore edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress1 509 07553 4310Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party650 65823 041Socialist Party181 4306 420Independents292 47210 360Other parties190 7926 760Total2 824 427100 0011 Patiala and East Punjab States Union edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress492 40833 382Shiromani Akali Dal477 63832 382Independents311 63521 131Other parties193 43113 110Total1 475 112100 005 Rajasthan edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress1 460 97141 429Independents1 028 38829 166Akhil Bharatiya Ram Rajya Parishad331 7609 413Krishikar Lok Party356 63010 111Bharatiya Jana Sangh107 0893 041Other parties242 1196 860Total3 526 957100 0020 Saurashtra edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress506 11266 366Hindu Mahasabha99 31113 020Independents58 3437 650Other parties98 93912 970Total762 705100 006 Travancore Cochin edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress1 224 53335 086Independents1 265 05136 244Travancore Tamil Nadu Congress115 8933 321Socialist Party459 66913 170Revolutionary Socialist Party220 3126 310Other parties205 0185 870Total3 490 476100 0011 Ajmer edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress89 76150 152Bharatiya Jana Sangh28 99016 200Communist Party of India25 12814 040Akhil Bharatiya Ram Rajya Parishad13 6247 610Pursharathi Panchayat10 7786 020Independents10 7185 990Total178 999100 002 Bhopal edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress97 29257 412Hindu Mahasabha34 71220 480Kisan Mazdoor Mandal8 8085 200Socialist Party3 3291 960Independents25 31614 94 Total169 457100 002 Bislaspur edit PartySeatsIndependents1Total1 Bilaspur constituency was uncontested Coorg edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress38 06359 651Independents25 75040 350Total63 813100 001 Delhi edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress324 21449 433Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party47 7357 281Bharatiya Jana Sangh169 99725 920Independents83 04512 660Other parties30 9094 710Total655 900100 004 Himachal Pradesh edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress117 03652 443Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party27 36812 260Bharatiya Jana Sangh23 91810 720Scheduled Caste Federation18 9888 510Socialist Party16 7807 520Independents19 0998 560Total223 189100 003 Kutch edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress78 77165 872Socialist Party5 9855 010Independents34 82429 120Total119 580100 002 Manipur edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress36 31723 821Socialist Party29 37219 261All Manipur National Union22 08314 480Praja Party16 95511 120Communist Party of India13 1848 650Kuki National Association12 1557 970Independents13 7379 010Other parties8 6645 680Total152 467100 002 Tripura edit PartyVotes SeatsCommunist Party of India96 45861 292Indian National Congress40 26325 580Bharatiya Jana Sangh9 6636 140Independents10 9876 980Total157 371100 002 Vindhya Pradesh edit PartyVotes SeatsIndian National Congress238 22033 754Socialist Party125 48017 781Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party106 07115 031Bharatiya Jana Sangh89 70112 710Independents94 91113 450Other parties51 4557 290Total705 838100 006Government formation editThe speaker of the first Lok Sabha was Ganesh Vasudev Mavalankar The first Lok Sabha also witnessed 677 sittings 3 784 hours the highest recorded count of the number of sitting hours The Lok Sabha lasted its full term from 17 April 1952 until 4 April 1957 Notable losses editFirst Law Minister B R Ambedkar was defeated in the Bombay North Central 14 constituency as Scheduled Castes Federation candidate by his little known former assistant and Congress Candidate Narayan Sadoba Kajrolkar who polled 1 38 137 votes compared to Ambedkar s 1 23 576 votes 10 156 Ambedkar then entered the parliament as a Rajya Sabha member He contested a by poll from Bhandara in 1954 in another attempt to enter the Lok Sabha but again lost to Borkar of Congress Acharya Kripalani lost from Faizabad in Uttar Pradesh as a KMPP candidate but his wife Sucheta Kripalani defeated the Congress candidate Manmohini Sahgal in Delhi 15 See also editList of members of the 1st Lok Sabha Election Commission of India 1952 Indian presidential electionReferences edit How India pulled off its first general election The Indian Express 12 April 2024 Retrieved 14 April 2024 Lok Sabha polls 2024 to have longest voting period since first general elections The Times of India 16 March 2024 Archived from the original on 17 March 2024 Retrieved 17 March 2024 Voting Period Of 2024 Lok Sabha Polls Longest Since First General Elections Archived from the original on 17 March 2024 Retrieved 17 March 2024 Elections that shaped India The first general elections a free country in full bloom The Hindu 28 March 2024 Retrieved 14 April 2024 Guha Ramachandra 2022 India after Gandhi the history of the world s largest democracy 10th anniversary edition updated and expanded first published in hardcover ed New Delhi Picador India ISBN 978 93 82616 97 9 General Election of India 1951 List of Successful Candidate PDF Election Commission of India p 6 Archived from the original PDF on 8 October 2014 Retrieved 12 January 2010 Pareek Shabdita 25 January 2016 This Is How The First General Elections Were Held in Independent India ScoopWhoop Archived from the original on 21 December 2018 Retrieved 21 December 2018 Interesting Facts About India s First General Elections indiatimes com 28 April 2014 Archived from the original on 21 December 2018 Retrieved 21 December 2018 India s first voter in Himachal Pradesh Archived 6 July 2017 at the Wayback Machine by Gautam Dhmeer in the Deccan Herald published 30 October 2012 retrieved 7 April 2014 a b Ramachandra Guha 2008 India After Gandhi The History of the World s Largest Democracy Harper Collins ISBN 978 0 06 095858 9 First general elections in India All you need to know India Today 10 February 2016 Archived from the original on 21 July 2021 Retrieved 21 December 2018 Weiner Myron 8 December 2015 Party Politics in India Princeton University Press pp 78 79 ISBN 978 1 4008 7841 3 Archived from the original on 30 March 2024 Retrieved 5 August 2023 Varshney Ashutosh 28 March 2015 Faults and lines Archived 16 December 2018 at the Wayback Machine The Indian Express Retrieved on 16 June 2020 reserved seat Archived from the original on 16 February 2016 Retrieved 26 January 2016 David Gilmartin 2014 Chapter 5 The paradox of patronage and the people s sovereignty In Anastasia Pivliavsky ed Patronage as Politics in South Asia Cambridge University Press pp 151 152 ISBN 978 1 107 05608 4 Further reading editGuha Ramachandra Democracy s Biggest Gamble World Policy Journal Spring 2002 19 1 pp 95 103 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 1951 52 Indian general election amp oldid 1219084262, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,