One Nation One Poll
A high-level committee headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind unanimously recommended holding simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and the State Assemblies, followed by synchronised local body polls within 100 days. It is heartening to note that the simultaneous polls would synchronise the timing of Lok Sabha and State Assembly elections across all States to reduce the frequency of polls throughout the country. Numerous commissions have supported one nation-one election to reduce electoral costs, streamline administration and lessen the electoral burden on citizens.
History: During the first four general elections (1952, 1957, 1962 and 1967), the elections to the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies were held simultaneously. This practice broke in 1959 after the Union government invoked Article 356 (failure of constitutional machinery) of the Constitution to dismiss the then-Kerala Government. Subsequently, due to the premature dissolution of the Lok Sabha and Legislative Assemblies on various occasions owing to the party in power losing majority due to defections, etc, the elections to the Lok Sabha and various state Assemblies came to be conducted at different times. Only four States hold simultaneous elections with the Lok Sabha — Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh, and Sikkim.
Reduce Electoral Cost: The political parties are spending considerable money on rallies and meetings, once during the Loksabha and again during the state elections. This duplication of spending will come to an end.
In addition, we all know that, on average, an MP represents over 15 Lakh voters, and an MLA represents about 2 lakh voters. Therefore, when the elections for MP's and MLA's will be held together, a candidate fighting for the Lok Sabha seat will be supported by more than eight MLA candidates (of his party) fighting from his constituent assembly. It would reduce the cost of fighting an election for every individual in a party.
Streamline Administration: We know that about 25 lakh officers and staff are deployed for more than two months in election duties. These officers and staff are not available to carry out their primary duty during this period. Similarly, police and paramilitary personnel are deployed whenever there are elections. This duplication of deployment would cease if Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies were held simultaneously.
In addition, the model code of conduct is enforced at every election, stopping development activities. Also, a lot of welfare programs are suspended mainly due to the model code of conduct. So, at least a one-time election will ensure the continuity of policies and Welfare programmes of the central and State governments. Holding the simultaneous polls would ensure the model code of conduct is enforced only once in five years.
Lessen the electoral burden on citizens: The election booths, counting areas, vehicles, etc, are required in each election. The citizens will have to bear this cost only once if elections are held simultaneously for Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies.
Implementation: The approval of States is not required for the constitutional amendment to conduct simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and state assemblies. However, the next step involves synchronising elections to municipalities and the panchayats with polls to Lok Sabha and state assemblies, which requires ratification by not less than one-half of the states.
In the present scenario, the opposition parties are opposing the “One Nation One Election” because of their defeat in the recent Lok Sabha elections. In addition, the regional parties are opposing the “One Nation One Election” because, according to a survey, there is a 77% chance that an average Indian voter will vote for the same party for both the State and Centre if elections are held simultaneously. This is because the Central Government allots money to the Government of the same party in the states.
Conclusion: It is challenging for the Election Commission and the general public to keep pace with so many elections within a span of five years. The synchronised elections would reduce electoral costs, streamline administration and lessen the electoral burden on citizens.