India Contemplates Simultaneous Elections: One Nation, One Election Plan
Former President Leads Effort to Streamline Electoral Process in India
The former President of India, Ram Nath Kovind, leads a panel to hold all elections in India at a time. The panel is now called the High-Level Committee (HLC) on One Nation, One Election, according to a statement from the Law Ministry.
The HLC also took note of the resignation of Adhir Ranjan Choudhury, the leader of the largest party in the lower house of Parliament, from the panel.
The Law Commission, a body that advises the government on legal matters, presented a roadmap to the HLC on October 25. The roadmap includes some constitutional changes needed to make simultaneous elections possible.
The Law Ministry had asked the Law Commission to study how to simultaneously hold elections for the lower house of Parliament and the State assemblies. The HLC, however, will also look into how to hold elections for local bodies like panchayats and municipalities along with them.
The Law Commission is still working on its final report, and some details are yet to be finalised. It plans to adjust the terms of all State assemblies so they can have elections with the lower house of Parliament in 2029 and onwards.
During the meeting, the Law Commission also shared its views and suggestions on the issue of simultaneous elections with the HLC.
The HLC wants to know what political parties think about this idea. It has written letters to six national parties, 33 State parties, and seven other parties not recognised by the Election Commission. The letters invite them to share their opinions on ‘One Nation, One Election’.
The HLC also approved its budget for the current financial year 2023-24.
Some important people attended the meeting. They were Home Minister Amit Shah; Ghulam Nabi Azad, the opposition leader in the upper house of Parliament; Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal; N.K. Singh, who was the head of a
