পাতা:বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্র (দ্বিতীয় খণ্ড).pdf/২২৪

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বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্রঃ দ্বিতীয় খণ্ড
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be held indirectly through an electoral college. Thus adult franchise having been conceded by the Constitution itself, the same does not appear to be a matter of serious controversy. As, however, one of the terms referred to the Commission is whether elections should be held on the basis of restricted franchise as recommended by the Constitution commission, it is necessary for us to deal with the question of franchise.

 Franchise in the Indo-Pakistan sub-continent all along developed with universal adult franchise as the ultimate objective. The idea of franchise during alien rule had a different connotation from what it implies now. While the then Government was not dependent on the will of the people, a certain amount of political satisfaction, specially of the vocal classes, was aimed at, so that there might be as little friction between the rulers and the ruled as possible Therefore, no serious consideration was given to associate the people in general with the governance of the country, as long as the educated and propertied persons could be kept satisfied by allowing them to participate in election to legislatures. It was this class of people that were first given the right of vote, and the right was gradually extended. Besides, it was stressed that extension of franchise beyond that limit was not administratively practicable. Adult suffrage was not, therefore, allowed to be fully achieved during the pre-Independence days.

 Franchise plays a very important role in a democracy which means a regime in which those who govern are chosen by those who are governed by means of free and fair elections. Franchise is thus the very basis of a system of representative government and has, therefore, supreme importance in the political life of this country where there are three representative governments one at the Centre and two in the Provinces.

 Franchise is a very valuable political right of a citizen, for, it is only by the exercise of this right that he is able to get his views expressed in the Legislature through his elected representative on all matters connected with the government and administration of the country. It is again this right that makes the status of a citizen different from that of a foreigner who has no right to vote, although he usually enjoys other rights under the general law of the country equally with a citizen. Moreover, denial of franchise to a citizen will offend as much against the principle of equality between citizens as against the accepted principle of the people's ultimate authority in a democracy. Besides, such a denial will be repugnant to the very preamble of the constitution which ensures that “the State shall exercise its power and authority through representatives chosen by the people", (Here, people' does not exclude the illiterate or the poor). It is only through adult suffrage that the equality of political rights of citizens can be ensured consistent with the principle of the people's ultimate authority in a democracy, the Legislatures are to represent the people as a whole and this can be achieved only by means of universal adult suffrage. Another advantage of universal adult suffrage is that lists of voters numbering crores can be more easily prepared with less expense, for, under this system, it would not be necessary, as in the case of restricted franchise to inquire into and determine the voting qualifications of such a huge number of electors. Furthermore, universal adult franchise will offer opportunities of political education to people and will thereby facilitate development of political parties on the basis of political ideology and on