The first voter of independent India, Shyam Saran Negi (106), set an example on Wednesday by exercising his franchise for the 34th time in the Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections.

Voting through postal ballot is being done in advance in Himachal Pradesh for four categories that include those voters aged 100 years and above, age 80 years and above, persons with disabilities (PWD) and essential services.

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The hill state has 1,190 voters above the age of 1,190 and 1,22,093 voters above the age of 80 years.

Polling in the state will be held on 12 November. The counting of votes and declaration of results will be done on 8 December.

Hailing from the tribal district of Kinnaur in Himachal Pradesh, Negi cast his vote through a postal ballot for the first time for the 14th Vidhan Sabha Elections at his home in Kalpa.

Born in July 1917, Negi had voted for the first time in 1951 in the general elections of India and has voted sixteen times in Lok Sabha Elections.
He is also a state election icon since 2014.
A teacher by profession, the centenarian has voted in every election since 1951 and has never missed an opportunity to vote.

Negi said that every citizen should vote to strengthen the democratic setup and the young voters should consider their duty to vote and contribute to strengthening the nation.

“We should feel proud of our voting right as it helps in choosing the right representative to lead the nation,” he added.

District Election Officer cum Deputy Commissioner Kinnaur, Abid Hussain Sadiq said that a red carpet was laid to bring him to the postal booth set up in the compound of his house.

Negi was brought on a red carpet upto the booth where he exercised his right to franchise and soon thereafter his vote was sealed in an envelope and dropped in the ballot box, he added.