Paramount Electoral Vision in Punjab: A British Perception

Abstract

Franchise is the base of Democracy and it is successfully going on in India. Proper administrative machinery became imperative to enable the voters to express their wishes in a general election. Election is a Latin word eligre which means ‘to choose’. It is reckoned as a part of the machinery of government in the democratic countries. In the history of India, the beginning of elections is considered with the Indian Councils Act of 1892. It was the first time that the element of election was introduced in Indian politics. In this Act, the indirect provision for the use of election for filling some non-official seats in the provincial councils and central legislative council was made. The word nomination instead of election was used in this Act. The principle of election received its approval in the Minto-Morley Act of 1909.   Under this Act, each legislative council was comprised of three classes of members – the elected, the officials and the nominated non-official members.