DRAFT CONSTITUTION 453
We desire that only Members who are elected by popular vote shall be entitled (o take part in the election of the President. Hence this amendment.
Mr. Vice-President : Mr. Mohd. Tahir may now move his amendment No. 23 to this amendment.
- The Honourable Dr. B. R. Ambedkar : Mr. Vice-President, Sir, of the amendments that have been moved, I can only accept 1064 and I very much regret that I cannot accept the other amendments.
Now, Sir, turning to the general debate on this article, the most important amendment is the amendment of Prof. K. T. Shah, which proposes that the President should be elected directly by adult suffrage. This matter, in my judgment, requires to be considered from three points of view. First of all, it must be considered from the point of view of the size of the electorate. Let me give the House some figures of the total electorate that would be involved in the election of the President, if we accepted Prof. K. T. Shah’s suggestion.
So far as the figures are available, the total population of the Governors’ provinces and the Commissioners’ provinces is about 228,
163, 637. The total population of the States conies to 88, 808, 434, making altogether a total of nearly 317 millions for the territory of India. Assuming that on adult franchise, the population that would be entitled to take part in the election of the President would be about 50 per cent of the total population, the electorate will consist of 158.5 millions. Let me give the figures of the electorate that is involved in the election of the American President. The total electorate in America, as I understand—I speak subject to correction,—is about 75 millions. I think if honourable Members will bear in mind the figure which I have given ; namely, 158.5 million, they would realise the impossibility of an election in which
158.5 millions of people would have to take part. The size of the electorate, therefore, in my judgement forbids our adopting adult suffrage in the matter of the election of the President.
The second question which has to be borne in mind in dealing with this question of adult suffrage is the administrative machinery. Is it possible for this country to provide the staff that would be necessary to be placed at the different polling stations to enable the 158.5 millions
*CAD, Vol. VII, 13th December 1948, pp. 997-08.