Shyam Saran Negi, 106, the first voter of independent India who cast his 34th vote for the forthcoming 14th Assembly elections of the state three days ago, passed away at his native place Kalpa in Himachal Pradesh on Saturday, his family said.

He will be cremated with full state honours, says Deputy Commissioner Abid Hussain Sadiq.

Negi cast his vote on Wednesday in the Kinnaur Assembly constituency.

Negi had cast his first vote in the independent country on October 23, 1951, in the Kalpa polling station, becoming the first voter in the country, and he cast his vote for the 34th time on November 2 this year which became his last, a feat that was acknowledged by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “This is commendable and should serve as an inspiration for the younger voters to take part in the elections and strengthen our democracy,” PM Modi had tweeted.

The 106-year-old had voted on November 2 through a postal ballot.

Chief Minister Jairam Thakur expressed his grief on Negi’s demise and said that the memory of the first voter of the country casting his last vote “will always be emotional”.

“Saddened to hear the news of the demise of Shyam Saran Negi ji, the first voter of independent India and who belonged to Kinnaur. While performing his duty, he cast his postal vote for the assembly elections for the 34th time on November 2, this memory will always be emotional,” Thakur tweeted.

“May God bless his virtuous soul at his feet and give strength to the bereaved family members,” he added.

“I have never missed an opportunity to cast my vote since India got its independence in 1947 and I am happy to vote this time too,” Negi had said in Kalpa, some 275 km from the state capital, after exercising his franchise.

Last year also, he cast his vote for the Mandi parliamentary bypolls.

Election officials said on earlier occasions Negi went to the nearest polling station to cast the vote.

He flashed his wrinkled inked finger after voting.

Like on previous occasions, the centenarian had requested the young voters to actively participate in the democratic exercise to get their representatives at the helm.

A staunch believer in democracy, the centenarian never fails to cast his vote in any election, be it Lok Sabha, Assembly or panchayat.

In 1951, Negi, a retired school teacher, was on election duty and had exercised his franchise in Chini constituency, later renamed Kinnaur.

Back then, voting in the snow-bound areas of the mountain state was held ahead of other places in the country.

Negi, who hails from the tribal district of Kinnaur, exercised his right to franchise for the 34th time for the 14th Vidhan Sabha Elections through postal ballot at his home.

He cast his vote through a postal ballot for the first time.

Born in July 1917, Negi voted for 16 times in Lok Sabha elections. He is also a state election icon since 2014.

(With Inputs From Agencies)