New Delhi: The Union Cabinet has approved the recommendation for ‘One Nation, One Election.’ The Cabinet has given its approval to the report of the high-level committee, headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind, which was appointed to study the issue of ‘One Nation, One Election.’
Home Minister Amit Shah recently announced that ‘One Nation, One Election’ will be implemented during the tenure of the third NDA government. The announcement was made at a press conference organized to mark the Narendra Modi government’s completion of 100 days. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman revealed the previous day that the policy framework for this has been prepared. Following this, the formal announcement was made. The bill will be presented during the Winter Session. The opposition has expressed its dissent regarding the Cabinet’s decision.
The Ram Nath Kovind committee, appointed by the Centre to oversee simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha, state assemblies, and local bodies, has recommended implementing a unified election by 2029. However, 15 opposition parties, including the Congress, CPI(M), CPI, TMC, BSP, and AAP, have conveyed their disagreement to the committee. Although 36 parties, including NDA allies, supported the proposal, the TDP has yet to express its stance. Without an absolute majority, the BJP cannot afford to alienate the TDP.
The Congress has criticized the ‘One Nation, One Election’ idea as impractical and argued that the government cannot sustain itself on hollow promises. Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram pointed out that implementing ‘One Nation, One Election’ would require at least five constitutional amendments.
