Draft Article 289B (Article 326 of Constitution of India 1950) was absent in the Draft Constitution 1948. The Drafting Committee Chairman introduced this provision on 16 June 1949. It unequivocally declared that elections to legislatures would be based on universal adult suffrage.
A Member opposed this Draft Article stating that adult franchise was not theoretically or practically possible. He believed that the Article ‘violated the tenets of democracy’ and implied that the Indian electorate was not enlightened, and parliamentary democracy in India would fail.
The President reminded the Member that the Draft Article was merely restating a principle that the Assembly had already accepted. There was no further debate and the Assembly adopted the Draft Article.
Draft Article 289B was adopted on the same day without further debate.
