z:\ ambedkar\vol-02\vol2-07.indd MK SJ+YS 21-9-2013/YS-8-11-2013 567
IN SUB-COMMITTEE NO. VI 567
Chairman: Subject to that, are the rest of the Committee agreed?
Sir C. Jehangir: I cannot agree to this figure, 25 per cent until we have the whole of the facts before us.
Chairman: We are suggesting that an expert Franchise Committee be set up.
Sir P. C. Mitter: Before we fully know the facts it would not be right for us to commit ourselves.
Chairman : It would not do for us to hand over our job to the expert Franchise Committee. We are in the unfortunate position of having to make some recommendation, and we cannot say that we recommend merely that somebody else should take over our job.
Sir P. C. Mitter: I am expressing only my own personal opinion. I suggest to the Franchise Committee that there should be an increase, as large an increase as possible, and I would not have objected to 10 or 20 or 50 per cent. If I know all the facts before hand on which to base an opinion.
Chairman: Would you like, Sir Provash, to put in such qualification as you desire, to the effect that any recommendation both as to maximum and minimum should be entirely subject to the discretion of the Franchise Committee ? I feel that we ought to give that Committee some guidance. However, we have got near enough now, and we will take an opportunity of speaking with you about this afterwards.
Mr. Chintamani: I do not know, Sir, whether you will agree to what I am about to suggest, but there is also before us an important proposal that the Franchise Committee should be asked to devise such qualifications as will ensure, as far as possible, the same proportion of voters to population in the different communities. This was proposed by the Simon Commission, and it has been supported by several local Governments. Could that be considered new ? If the Franchise Committee find it not possible they will reject it.
Chairman: I think it comes under the next head, namely, “general basis of franchise, (i) Should the franchise qualifications be the same for all communities in the same area ?” I call your attention to those words “in the same area”. Do not let us embark now on the subject of women’s suffrage or anything of that sort.
Sir P. C. Mitter: I thought from what you ruled that the special interests and communal interests came under the Minorities Committee.
Chairman: We shall very likely know more about that after tomorrow. For the moment we are discussing the general basis of the franchise, and whether the qualifications should be the same for all communities.
Diwan Bahadur Ramachandra Rao: You said that you would speak to the Prime Minister and let us know whether this matter came within the province of our Committee or of the other.
Dr. Ambedkar: I should like to make one proposal. Although the question of universal adult suffrage has been pointed out by certain members