Page 37 - Leap of Faith inside pages with cover (1)

Chapter 2

A New Democracy

on World Map

morrow of the signing of the Cons tu on. It was also the
eve of India's first Republic Day. A statutory and
autonomous Elec on Commission was a significant
innova on in the electoral history of the world. The
number of democracies in the world, which had already
been on the rise since 1976, experienced a spurt a er the
Seal of the Constituent Assembly
Cold War ended in 1991. A large number of countries of
former Communist Blocs like in Eastern Europe and Sub
Saharan Africa became democracies.
he Cons tuent Assembly first met on December
India had commi ed herself to the world's biggest
9, 1946. Its 165 days of delibera ons, of which democra c experiment by making the elec ons to the
T114 were devoted to considering the world's
House of the People (Lok Sabha) and Legisla ve Assemblies
longest dra cons tu on, spanned across two years, 11
months and 17 days broken into 11 sessions. This
culminated in the adop on of the Cons tu on of India
on November 26, 1949. On January 24, 1950, the
assembly met again when 284 members appended their
signatures to the original copy of the Cons tu on.
While the bulk of the Cons tu on came into force on
January 26, 1950, the provisions related to ci zenship
(Ar cles 5,6,7,8 and 9) as well as the Ar cle 324 regarding
se ng up of Elec on Commission of India had come into
immediate force with its adop on. Elec on Commission
was formally ins tuted on January 25, 1950 or on the Making of Indian Constitution - Constituent Assembly of India

21