Shimla2 hours ago
Shyam Saran Negi, the first voter of India, is no more in this world. Shyam Saran Negi, a 106-year-old veteran of Himachal Pradesh’s Kinnaur district, said goodbye to the world on Saturday. He breathed his last at around 2 pm on Friday. After independence, when the first general elections were held in India in 1951-52, Shyam Saran Negi was the first to vote in it.
Voting from home due to ill health
District Election Officer Abid Hussain said that Negi had expressed his desire to cast his vote by going to the polling booth for the 2022 Himachal Assembly elections, but due to ill health, the voting was done through postal ballot paper at his home. In this way he went after fulfilling his duty even before leaving the world.
The last farewell will be given from the police band
The District Election Officer said that Negi would be cremated with a police band and with full state honours. At the same time, the District Election Officer and the entire team of administration will go to his house to pay tribute.
PM Modi expressed sorrow
Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the death of Negi by tweeting. He appreciated Shyam Saran Negi and described him as an important link in strengthening the democracy of the country. He wrote that Negi’s enthusiasm to cast his vote encourages our young voters.
Tweet by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Negi cast his first vote in 1951
Shyam Saran Negi of Kinnaur was the first to vote in the first general election of independent India held in 1951, hence he is considered to be the oldest and the first voter in the country. Since then today Negi has come to the booth in every election and cast his vote.
District Election Officer Abid Hussain said that Negi is a legend not only of the state but of the country. From 1951 till today, he has been casting his vote continuously. It is a matter of happiness that even in this assembly election, he has played an important role in the great festival of democracy by casting his vote.
Shyam Sharan Negi, the first voter of independent India.
The story of becoming the first voter is very interesting
Shyam Sharan Negi was born in 1917 in Kalpa village of Kinnaur district. 104-year-old Shyam Sharan lives in his ancestral village. From 1940 to 1946, he worked as a guard in the Forest Department. After that he went to the education department and became a teacher in Kalpa Lower Middle School. The first Lok Sabha elections were held in the country in 1952. But due to heavy snowfall in Kinnaur, elections were held 6 months back in October 1951.
At the time of the first election, Shyam Sharan was a teacher at Moorang School in Kinnaur. His duty was to get the elections done, but he was so fond of voting and the duty was in Shongthong’s Murang and the vote was to be cast in Kalpa, so he voted early in the morning and sought permission to go on duty. He reached his polling place early in the morning. The polling party reached at 6:15.
Negi requested for early voting. The polling party opened the register and gave them the slip. History was made as soon as voting was done and Shyam Sharan Negi became the first voter of independent India.
Himachal Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur expressed grief over Negi’s death by tweeting.