A special session of Parliament from September 18 to 22 was called on 31 August 2023 and it is expected that the Centre might introduce bills on 'One Nation, One Election', Uniform Civil Code and Women's Reservation in the special session. Next day, the Government announced the setting up of a high-level committee under former President Ram Nath Kovind to explore the feasibility of synchronizing elections for Parliamentary general elections with Assembly, Municipal and Panchyat Elections.
‘One country, one election’ is not a new thing. After Independence, National and State elections were held simultaneously in 1957, 1962 and 1967. Some legislative assemblies were dissolved prematurely in 1968 and 1969 and in 1970 the Parliament too was dissolved. Anyway, the continuity of the synchronized elections completely broke by 1972 when no Assembly election coincided with Parliamentary elections. The Election Commission of India had put forward a proposal of simultaneous election in 1983 but the then Indira Gandhi government rejected it. BJP’s 2014 election manifesto mentions it; and this issue has resurfaced since Narendra Modi took office as Prime Minister.
Belgium, Sweden and South Africa are the three countries in the world where simultaneous elections are held. Nepal has the experience of holding national and state elections simultaneously once in 2017.
Organizing state assembly and Lok Sabha elections simultaneously may reduce election expenditure but complexities could arise if any state government collapses or gets dissolved before their scheduled five-year term. Synchronized elections will enable the government to devote more time to governance rather than to winning the polls, but it is not that easy to bring in a new law like ‘One Nation One Election’ as the government would have to get an amendment to the Constitution passed in each house of Parliament by a two-thirds majority along with ratification by at least half of the state legislatures. If it becomes possible to hold elections simultaneously, the black money which is heavily used in elections will reduce significantly. National unity and harmony bring prosperity and power. Every election divides people, causing a serious rise in the levels of casteism and hostility to different groups. Continuous elections must end, as they are a threat to the integrity of the nation.
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