Looking forward to exercising his franchise once again on Sunday, India's "first" voter Shyam Saran Negi Saturday appealed to Himachal Pradesh electors to elect "honest" candidates for all the four Lok Sabha seats in the state.
"Elect honest and active candidates for your parliamentary seats instead of voting for particular parties," 102-year-old Negi told PTI.
Negi also expressed his desire to vote again Sunday during the final phase of 2019 general elections.
"A resident of Himachal's tribal district Kinnaur, Shyam Sharan Negi is India's first voter and very important for the state Election Department," Kinnaur District Election Officer Gopal Chand told PTI.
A retired school teacher, Negi, as per his official records, was born on July 1, 1917.
Negi still vividly remembers how he became India's first voter. "India's first election was held in February 1952, but the voting for remote, tribal areas in Himachal was held five months in advance on October 23, 1952 owing to fears of inclement weather rendering the exercise impossible here during winter," he said.
