First voter of Independent India Shyam Saran Negi passes away at 106

Negi was a member of the polling team in 1951 and vividly remembered casting his first vote in the Shonthong polling station and his polling party trekking long distances to conduct polling in Purvani, Ribba, Moarang, Nesong over ten days.

The first voter of independent India, Shyam Saran Negi, passed away early Saturday morning at the age of 106. Negi was a Kinnaur resident who voted by postal ballot in the upcoming Himachal Pradesh assembly elections on November 2.

Following reports, the 106-year-old was unwell at the time. District Collector Kinnaur Abid Hussain has said that the district administration is planning his funeral along with a band to bid him farewell honourably.

Negi was a member of the polling team in 1951 and vividly remembered casting his first vote in the Shonthong polling station and his polling party trekking long distances to conduct polling in Purvani, Ribba, Moarang, Nesong over ten days.

After casting his postal vote on November 2 for the upcoming Himachal election, Negi said, "Youth should come forward to participate in the democratic process as it is not only our right but also our duty to participate in elections by exercising our franchise."

The Election Commission of India tweets, "Not only was he the first voter in Independent India, but he was also a man of exceptional faith in democracy. Shyam Saran Negi's death is mourned by ECI. We are eternally grateful for his service to the country."

Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur has expressed condolences on the death of 106-year-old Shyam Saran Negi. "Saddened to learn of the death of Shyam Saran Negi Ji, the first voter of independent India and a Kinnaur resident," CM Jairam Thakur tweeted. 

Negi, born on July 1, 1917, worked as a schoolteacher in Kalpa. When India held its first general elections post the end of British rule in 1947, on October 25, 1951, Negi was the first to vote. Although the majority of the voting in that first election took place in February 1952, Himachal went to the polls five months earlier due to the weather in the state being inclement in February and March and heavy snowfall during that time would have made it impossible for citizens to reach the polling stations.