Who Was The First Chief Election Commissioner Of India?

The First Chief Election Commissioner of India was Sukumar Sen. In a newly-independent and vast country like India, the elections were the topmost priority and the role of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) was of great responsibility. Hence, to conduct free and fair elections, Sukumar Sen was nominated as the first chief election commissioner of free India. In this blog, let us get to know more about the first chief election commissioner of India and how he wrote history.

Sukumar Sen And His Achievements

Sukumar Sen assumed the office of the Election Commission on March 21, 1950, and served until December 19, 1958. He was a distinguished civil servant before being appointed as the first Election Commissioner of India. 

• He was tasked with the mammoth responsibility of overseeing the first general election of Independent India in 1951-52, which was no small feat considering the size and diversity of the nation.

• Sen played an important role in establishing the Election Commission of India (ECI), as an independent and autonomous body responsible for overseeing elections in the country.
• Under Sen’s leadership, the first general election in India was conducted successfully in 1951-52, setting a precedent for future elections in the country.
• His strict adherence to the principles of fair elections led him to innovate and introduce the use of ballot papers for voting and the use of the indelible ink mark on voters’ fingers to prevent fraud.
• Sen also introduced several innovations in the electoral process, such as the use of electronic voting machines and voter ID cards, to streamline the voting process and minimize fraud.

Challenges Faced By The First CEC

However, during this process, he met many challenges but found solutions too. His challenges were- 

1. Big Population
2. An Unsettled Population
3. Illiterateracy
4. Lack of awareness to Vote
5. Streamline the data of the citizens.
6. Set up the Code of Conduct for elections

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This is all about the first chief election commissioner of India. For more content related to the different states of India, visit our articles like this, you can get Study notes on the Modern History of India here. Also, you can visit our general knowledge page on Indian History!