Major landslide moves have been taken truly towards implementing the ONOE initiative by the Indian government considering the aspect of a Joint Parliamentary Committee to talk over the proposed legislation particularly targeting simultaneous elections across the country.
The 31-member committee draws representation from various political parties and includes recognizable faces like Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Anurag Singh Thakur.
Formation of the JPC
The JPC was set up following the presentation of two bills in the Lok Sabha namely the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, by Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal.
The bills seek to amend the Constitution to allow for simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies.
However, being not able to find reception in the Lok Sabha with the required two-third majority, the bills were referred to the JPC for detailed examination after they received 269 votes in favor and 198 against.
Composition of The Committee
The 31-member Joint Parliamentary Committee is to comprise 21 Lok Sabha Members and 10 Rajya Sabha MPs. Noteworthy members of the committee include:
- Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (Congress),
- Anurag Singh Thakur (BJP),
- Manish Tewari (Congress),
- Anil Baluni (BJP),
- Dharmendra Yadav (Samajwadi Party),
- Kalyan Banerjee (Trinamool Congress),
- Supriya Sule (Nationalist Congress Party),
- Shrikant Shinde (Shiv Sena),
- Sambit Patra (BJP)
The committee is expected to submit its report by the first day last week of the next Parliament session, presenting a thorough examination of the proposed legislation.
Background and Rationale
One Nation, One Election attempts to synchronize elections of the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies, a practice already present before 1967. Proponents say that simultaneous elections would cut down on the number of elections, aiding in reducing government spending, protecting the primary duties of security forces, and minimizing the benefits realized by developmental work through a Model Code of Conduct. This was also discussed and recommended by the Law Commission of India in its 170th Report and the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice in its 79th report.
Opposition and Concerns
Despite all these pushes from the government, a lot of aggression has been poured on the ONOE bills so far. Critics say that the whole idea impinges on the federal structure constitutionally and increases the power of the center over the states.
Opposition parties have called them an impingement on democracy and worry that these bills could trigger a shift to totalitarianism. The floor of Parliament experienced vigorous protests, with opposition members calling for the bills to be immediately withdrawn.
The Stand of the Government
The government states that the ONOE bills are consistent with the Constitution and do not violate its basic structure. Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal remarked that objection relating to the bills is mainly political and laid stress on the possible benefits of simultaneous elections.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah made it known that the Prime Minister had suggested forwarding the bills to the JPC, showing the government’s readiness to engage in further discussion on this matter.
Next Steps
The JPC will perform a full review of the bill, weighing various views and issues. The committee’s report will act as a foundation for decisions about the next course of the ‘One Nation, One Election’ initiative.
As the nation waits for the committee’s report, the debate over simultaneous elections is reminiscent of a broad spectrum of opinions riding across the political divide.
The formation of the JPC is a significant first step in the ongoing discourse about electoral reforms in India.
To provide the scope to deal with the complexities of simultaneous elections, balancing administrative efficiency with the sanctity of democratic principles, will be the jurisdiction of the committee’s scorecards.
