The committee held discussions on the Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill, 2024.
NEW DELHI: The Joint Committee of Parliament examining the proposed legislation on simultaneous elections is working towards creating a framework that could enable the ‘One Nation, One Election’ model to be implemented by the 2029 Lok Sabha elections, committee chairperson PP Chaudhary told news agency PTI.Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the panel’s two-day meeting in Goa, Chaudhary said consultations held across the country had received overwhelming support from civil society stakeholders for the proposal. He also cited estimates suggesting that frequent elections cost the Indian economy nearly Rs 7 lakh crore.The committee held discussions on the Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill, 2024, beginning its Goa visit with an interaction involving chief minister Pramod Sawant and members of the state cabinet. The deliberations focused on the practical challenges of conducting simultaneous elections and possible ways to address them.”We had an informal interaction with the chief minister and cabinet ministers, who represent the people of Goa. We discussed how ‘One Nation, One Election’ can be implemented, what challenges exist and how they can be mitigated while maintaining a fine balance acceptable to all,” Chaudhary said. He said the panel has already travelled to several states, including Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi, where it consulted constitutional experts, educationists, civil society organisations and other stakeholders.According to Chaudhary, the response has been overwhelmingly positive.”We have found that almost 99 per cent of stakeholders, particularly from civil society and various organisations, favour simultaneous elections. The effort now is to evolve a mechanism that is acceptable to all political parties,” he said.Asked about the likely timeline, the BJP MP from Rajasthan’s Pali constituency said the committee was exploring different models that could allow the reform to take effect before the next general election.He added that some states could align their election schedules even earlier if their governments and political parties voluntarily agree to synchronise their electoral cycles.Chaudhary also highlighted the economic case for the proposal, referring to findings presented before the high-level committee headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind.He said an economic assessment submitted to the Kovind panel estimated that conducting elections separately across the country results in losses of nearly Rs 7 lakh crore, while synchronised polls could produce comparable economic gains.”Elections are now not confined to one state. If elections are held anywhere in the country, they have an impact on other states because the economy is interconnected,” Chaudhary said.Using Goa as an example, he said elections in other states influence tourist arrivals in Goa, while elections in Goa itself affect the state’s tourism sector.”The economy today is globalised. An adverse impact in one state affects other states as well. Frequent elections have economic consequences beyond state boundaries,” he said.Chaudhary also argued that repeated elections interrupt governance and place additional burdens on the education system, as government school teachers are routinely assigned election-related duties such as preparing electoral rolls, training and polling work.”As a result, teaching in government schools suffers. The worst affected are children from economically weaker sections who depend on government schools. This is a serious concern if the situation continues over the coming decades,” he said.Describing simultaneous elections as a key electoral reform envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chaudhary said the initiative would contribute to India’s ambition of becoming a developed nation by 2047.”The details will emerge with time. The objective is to build a broad consensus and evolve a practical mechanism acceptable to all,” Choudhari said.
