New Delhi:
Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee came out swinging Thursday after the Union Cabinet cleared two bills – including one that will amend the Constitution to permit simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly polls – and bring the BJP’s ‘one nation, one election‘ dream one step closer to fruition.
The Trinamool leader – a vocal critic of the proposal she earlier called “a design to subvert the basic structure of the Constitution – this evening slammed the “anti-federal” exercise and labelled it “an authoritarian imposition designed to undermine India’s democracy and federal structure”.
“Our MPs will oppose this draconian legislation, tooth-and-nail… Bengal will NEVER bow to Delhi’s dictatorial whims,” she said. “This is about saving India’s democracy from the clutches of autocracy!”
Ms Banerjee’s fierce attack today underlines her long-standing opposition to the conduct of simultaneous elections. In January she wrote to the centre-appointed panel – led by ex-President Ram Nath Kovind, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah a member – to red-flag her concerns.
The Union Cabinet has bulldozed their way through with the unconstitutional and anti-federal One Nation, One Election Bill, ignoring every legitimate concern raised by experts and opposition leaders.
This is not a carefully-considered reform; it’s an authoritarian imposition…
— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) December 12, 2024
She said she had “basic conceptual difficulties with the principle”.
READ | “2 Problems”: Mamata Banerjee Rejects ‘One Nation, One Election’
The issues raised were – constitutional and structural implications of the term ‘one nation’, and the timing of parliamentary and Assembly poll, particularly if there is a big gap in existing poll cycles.
Opposition On ‘One Nation, One Election’
Ms Banerjee was joined in her condemnation of the ‘one nation, one election’ proposal by her Tamil Nadu counterpart, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam’s MK Stalin, who called it “anti-democratic”.
The Union Cabinet has approved introducing the draconian ‘One Nation, One Election Bill’ in Parliament. This impractical and anti-democratic move will erase regional voices, erode federalism, and disrupt governance.
Rise up #INDIA!
Let us resist this attack on Indian Democracy…
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) December 12, 2024
“Let us resist this attack on Indian democracy with all our strength!” he said.
Bengal and Tamil Nadu are scheduled, for now, to hold Assembly elections in 2026.
The Aam Aadmi Party’s Arvind Kejriwal also spoke out, calling for political consensus and attention to demands on the country’s healthcare and education infrastructure over simultaneous elections.
The country needs
ONE NATION, ONE EDUCATION
ONE NATION, ONE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM
Not
ONE NATION, ONE ELECTION
BJP’s misplaced priorities
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) December 12, 2024
“This country needs ‘one nation, one education’, ‘one nation, one healthcare system’… not ‘one nation, one election’,” the ex-Delhi Chief Minister said, lamenting the BJP’s “misplaced priorities”.
Delhi’s next Assembly election is likely just weeks away – it is expected in February.
For the Congress, Assam MP Gaurav Gogoi red-flagged possible negative impacts on the country’s federal structure, and said opportunities to put an ad hoc ‘one nation, one election’ proposal into practice last month – by holding the Maharashtra and Haryana elections together – were spurned.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not walked the talk. He talks of ‘one nation, one election’ but, when it suits him, he holds the Haryana and Maharashtra elections separately. He does not even hold the election in one state in one phase… he does it in five when it suits him,” he declared
Ex-Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena faction and the CPIM’s John Brittas also joined a growing chorus of opposition voices against the ‘one nation, one election’ proposal.
BJP, Allies Welcome Proposal
The step forward in holding simultaneous elections was welcomed by the BJP’s lawmakers and, crucially, those from its allies, including Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United.
“Nitish Kumar has always advocated for simultaneous polls… The country is always in ‘election mode’…. If there is one election, it will reduce expenses significantly,” the JDU’s Sanjay Kumar said.
The Lok Janshakti Party faction of Union Minister Chirag Paswan has also backed the bill.
“LJP has supported it… Every six months there is election in some state (and then) representatives are not able to give time in Parliament and resources are wasted,” MP Shambhavi Choudhary said.
The JDU and LJP both face an election next year, when Bihar chooses a new government.
From the BJP camp, actor-politician Kangana Ranaut said, “This is a good step. A lot of government time and money is wasted on elections. This will save money and is a good initiative.”
Cabinet Clears ‘One Elections’ Bills
Hours earlier the Union Cabinet greenlit two bills that may be tabled in the ongoing Parliament session – should there be a break long enough from disruptions and repeated adjournments as the BJP and Congress squabble over allegations of links between Sonia Gandhi and George Soros.
READ | Cabinet Clears ‘One Nation, One Election’ Bill For Simultaneous Polls
The greenlight to two bills follows approval of the Kovind panel report in September; the panel said then it was of “unanimous opinion that simultaneous polls should be held” and that it would “transform the (country’s) electoral processes (and) governance” and “optimise scarce resources”.
What Is ‘One Nation, One Election’?
Simply put, it means all Indians will vote in Lok Sabha and Assembly elections – to pick central and state representatives – in the same year, if not at the same time.
At present, there are only three states that vote with a Lok Sabha election – Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, and Odisha. Three others – Maharashtra, Haryana, and Jammu and Kashmir – vote later in the year.
The rest follow a non-synced five-year cycle; Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Telangana, for example, were among those voting at different times last year.
Challenges To ‘One Nation, One Election’
The ‘One Nation, One Election’ proposal was part of the BJP’s manifesto in 2019, but has drawn heavy criticism from the opposition, who have red-flagged constitutional issues.
NDTV Explains | ‘One Nation, One Election’. What Are Pros And Cons?
Regional parties have also pointed out their limited resources means they may not be able to spotlight local issues to voters, in the face of better-funded parties also contesting the Lok Sabha election.
Another area of concern is the recurring cost of procuring EVMS, or electronic voting machines. This, the poll panel has said, will be nearly Rs 10,000 crore every 15 years.
Can ‘One Nation, One Election’ Work?
Not without an amendment to the Constitution and that amendment being ratified by the governments of all states and union territories, as well as, possibly, major political parties.
READ | Law Panel May Propose Simultaneous Polls In 2029
These are Article 83 (term of Parliament), Article 85 (dissolution of Lok Sabha by the President), Article 172 (duration of state legislatures), and Article 174 (dissolution of state legislatures), as well as Article 356 (imposition of President’s Rule).
Legal experts have warned that failure to pass such amendments will leave the proposal open to attack on charges of violating India’s federal structure.
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