New Delhi: In a move towards holding simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies, the Union Cabinet approved the One Nation One Election proposal on Wednesday.
The bill to conduct simultaneous elections is expected to be presented in the upcoming winter session of Parliament, according to sources. This decision followed the submission of a report by a high-level committee led by former President Ram Nath Kovind to the Union Cabinet.
The Modi 2.0 administration had established this committee to assess the viability of simultaneous elections, fulfilling a major pledge from the BJP’s Lok Sabha election manifesto. The committee delivered its report to the President in March of this year.
In its extensive 18,626-page report, the committee recommended that the first step should be to hold simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, which does not require state approval for a constitutional amendment.
The subsequent phase would be to align the elections of municipalities and panchayats with those of the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies, necessitating the endorsement of at least half of the states.
The panel has suggested up to 18 constitutional amendments to make One Nation One Election a reality. Recently, the BJP has been actively promoting One Nation One Election, an initiative also highlighted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day address.
Prime Minister Modi has argued that simultaneous elections are necessary, stating that frequent elections impede the nation’s development. This week, Union Home Minister Amit Shah reaffirmed the commitment to this initiative, asserting that the One Nation One Election will be realized during the NDA’s present term.
