1952: Of booths, ballots and a sense of belonging
(This story originally appeared in on Apr 08, 2024)
‘A test for all of us’ is how Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru described the first general elections in India, in his radio broadcast on Nov 22, 1951, 8.30pm. “This is our first election on an adult franchise. The standard we set now will act as a precedent and govern future elections.”
In Madras, the elections were spread over Jan 1952, and ahead of the polls, instructions to the public on how to cast their votes and the purpose of adult franchise were aired through All India Radio and documentaries in cinema halls, while magazines published articles on how assembly and parliamentary constituencies are structured.
So, what was it like then?
BALLOTS IN OR BALLOTS OUT?
In those days, as only about 20% of the population was literate, polling booths had a row of ballot boxes with symbols, says former journalist K Vishwanathan. “The ballot paper merely had to be dropped into the box that had the symbol of the candidate being voted for. But confusion ensued since it was the first election, and some ballot papers were found placed on top of the boxes instead. Fraudulence was rampant, and interested parties would collect these and drop them in their own candidate’s box,” says the 92-year-old.
Counting, he says, took several days and people got to know the results only through newspapers. Not many people lived to old age, so there was no question of postal votes.
“ Women from Thanjavur-Trichy belt were progressive and made sure they cast their vote. They had been
