Elections in India: adult suffrage, delimitation and the voter
Every adult citizen votes on one roll, constituencies are redrawn after a census, and a constitutional commission runs the show.
What the paper can ask
- Adult suffrage: every citizen of at least eighteen years may register as a voter unless disqualified; the age was lowered from twenty-one.
- The Election Commission has a Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners (a three-member body since 1 October 1993). EVMs were first tried in Kerala in 1982, and VVPAT slips have been used across Indian elections since 2019. (as of 24 Oct 2026)
- Delimitation Commissions sat in 1952, 1963, 1973 and 2002. Lok Sabha seats rose from 489 to 543. A freeze on seat numbers, first put in place in 1976, now runs until the first census after 2026.
- The Representation of the People Act 1951 covers the conduct of elections, qualifications and disqualifications, corrupt practices and election disputes.
- National Voters' Day is observed on 25 January.
Why exams ask
Setters ask about the constitutional basis of the vote, the voting age, who runs elections, delimitation and what National Voters' Day marks.
The full story
India chose universal adult franchise from its first general election. The Constitution says elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies are on the basis of adult suffrage: every citizen above the voting age, unless disqualified for non-residence, unsound mind, crime or corrupt practice, may register. An independent, constitutional Election Commission conducts the polls under the Representation of the People Acts.
In the news
Test yourself
1.National Voters' Day, first celebrated in 2011, marks the foundation day of which body, on 25 January?
Correct. The Election Commission of India was established on 25 January 1950.
Not quite. The Election Commission of India was established on 25 January 1950. It goes into your error book.
2.The right to vote in elections to the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies on the basis of adult suffrage is provided in
Correct. Article 326 provides that elections shall be on the basis of adult suffrage, with the voting age reduced from 21 to 18 by the 61st Amendment Act, 1988.
Not quite. Article 326 provides that elections shall be on the basis of adult suffrage, with the voting age reduced from 21 to 18 by the 61st Amendment Act, 1988. It goes into your error book.
3.Which amendment extended the time to carry out delimitation and froze the allocation of Lok Sabha seats to States on the 1971 census until the first census after 2026?
Correct. The 84th Amendment Act, 2001 extended the freeze (first imposed by the 42nd till 2000) to the first census after 2026; the 87th (2003) allowed readjustment of constituencies on 2001 census figures.
Not quite. The 84th Amendment Act, 2001 extended the freeze (first imposed by the 42nd till 2000) to the first census after 2026; the 87th (2003) allowed readjustment of constituencies on 2001 census figures. It goes into your error book.