Adult Franchise

Every citizen in India has the right to vote there are some provisions for that. We have already discussed a lot about government and its various organs in my previous blog called government. Now, I am talking about one of the important features of it. that called Universal Adult Franchise. What is that?  who comes under this category? if you want to know read the blog.

UNIVERSAL ADULT FRANCHISE

When an individual, who is of 18 years or above, exercises his/her right to elect a representative by casting a vote, is called universal adult franchise. No person can be denied the right to vote on the basis on his/her education, caste, creed, colour or gender.

In some Arab countries, like Saudi Arabia, it was only by 2010 that women have got the right to exercise their franchise. In Lebanon, there is partial suffrage, i.e., women have to provide proof of elementary education, but the same does not apply to the men of that country. It was felt that women were incapable of taking such an important decision and were best suited for household chores. Unlike other countries, in India, both men and women have enjoyed the right to vote since the First General elections in 1951.

Another example of a country which did not have a free voting society was South Africa. The menace of Apartheid existed in that society. ‘Apartheid’ means separation based on race. The white people of the country enjoyed all the rights and privileges but the non-whites were devoid of their rights. They were not even allowed to participate in the election of their our country. Nelson Mandela, the well-known South African leader, stayed in prison for twenty-seven years fighting for this cause and was ultimately successful in abolishing Apartheid in 1994.

A constitution is the system of laws and basic principles by which a state, a country or an organization is governed. With the help of these laws, power and authority get distributed in a country. Every governing institution must abide by the provisions of the constitution.