Arvind Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi and the leader of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), mocked the BJP-led national government on Sunday for considering the possibility of holding simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha, state legislatures, municipalities, and panchayats as part of the “one nation, one election” campaign. A high-level team presided over by the former president Ram Nath Kovind has also been officially established to discuss the viability of carrying out this initiative.
Kejriwal raised Question
Kejriwal questioned the reasoning behind the idea of such a step while speaking at a gathering in Haryana. He questioned what the average individual would gain from “one nation, one election.” Conducting hundreds or thousands of elections, he questioned, “What would we get?”
He also advocated for equitable access to healthcare and education for all social strata in the nation. “What matters most to the nation? One Nation, One Election or One Nation, One Education (equal education for everybody, regardless of wealth) Rich or poor, everyone is treated equally under One Nation, One Treatment What would One Nation One Election bring to the average person?”, he asked on X.
Prior to this, Congressman Rahul Gandhi criticized the Center’s decision and claimed that the idea of holding simultaneous polls across the nation amounted to a “attack on the Indian union and all its states.” “Bharat is a confederation of states known as INDIA. One nation, one vote is an attack on the union and all of its states,” he added.
On Saturday, a committee of eight people was established to look at the possibility of holding polls simultaneously and offer suggestions. Days after the Center scheduled a special session of the Parliament from September 18 to 22, the panel was established.
Amit Shah, the Union Minister of Housing, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, and former Rajya Sabha Leader Kovind were also chosen by the Center. The members of the panel are Ghulam Nabi Azad, NK Singh, a former chairman of the Finance Commission, Subhash C. Kashyap, a senior attorney, and Sanjay Kothari, a former chief vigilance commissioner. Arjun Ram Meghwal, a minister of union law, will be a special invitee to the committee sessions.
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury declined to join the panel shortly after the announcement. The committee’s “terms of reference have been prepared in a manner to guarantee its conclusions,” the speaker claimed.
One Nation, One Election has many pros and cons as discussed in one of our previous articles.
One Nation, One Election will make sure to save tax and lessen the load on the Election Commission, security services, and administrative setup. Additionally, it will reinforce the administrative apparatus so that it may focus on developmental initiatives rather than electioneering, guarantee timely execution of government plans, and more. The evaluation of policies and programs at both levels will be streamlined, and the complete study of the electorate will be more convenient. Voters can compare manifestos and the subsequent government.
Furthermore, because of year-round campaigning, governments are unable to address the long-term concerns of their constituents and uphold their political obligations. This characteristic makes governments less likely to make difficult long-term decisions.
The worst infringement of the Indian Federal Structure, however, would be the term reduction since India considers itself to be a quasi-federal nation—that is, a federation that is still holding together. Changing the terms of current legislatures will imply unilaterally shortening or extending their tenure, which is against the states’ right to self-government.
Many other opposition members have not received the presumed subject of Special Parliamentary Session held on September 18 in a positive stride and slammed the non-existing proposal before it has been even presented.
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