One Nation One Election Bill Goes to JPC Amid Opposition Stir
Image credit video grab of Sansad TV
Lok Sabha Witnesses Passionate Debate on Simultaneous Poll Bill
By Raisina Correspondent
New Deli, December 17: The Lok Sabha on Tuesday referred the Constitution (129) Amendment Bill for holding simultaneous elections to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) of parliament. The Opposition strongly opposed the introduction of the Constitution amendment bill.
During debate on the introduction, Union Minister for Home Affairs Amit Shah urged upon the Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla that the bill may be referred to the JPC. “During discussion at the meeting of the Union Cabinet, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed desire that the bill for holding simultaneous elections in the country be referred to the JPC for wider consideration,” Shah said.
Shah also stated that the Union Cabinet will consider the report of the proposed JPC to further amend the Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill. Shah’s intervention came amid spirited opposition to the introduction of the bill. The bill was approved after a division of the votes.
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Earlier, the Congress MP Manish Tewari opposed the introduction of the bill. He alleged that the legislative proposal will make the Assemblies subordinates subordinate to parliament. NK Premchandran of the RCP also opposed the bill, saying that the legislation is against the federal principles.
Amraram, the Lok Sabha MP from Sikar in Rajasthan, of the CPI (M) claimed that the bill is a precursor to dictatorship in the country. “This bill is designed to help bring dictatorship in the country,” added Amraram.
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Union Minister of State (Independent) charge of the Ministry of Law and Justice Arjun Meghwal rejected the claims that the bill violates Article 368A. “Article 327 that empowers parliament to frame provisions for holding elections to the Legislative Assemblies is also a Constitutional provision,” added Meghwal, while rejecting the claims of the Opposition.
Meghwal also rejected claims of the Opposition on the bill attacking the autonomy of the states, saying that the proposal only empowers the government for efficient framing of the rules.
“The bill also does not violate the basic structure of the Constitution,” said Meghwal while citing cases heard by the Supreme Court. He added that the bill doesn’t reduce the powers of the state Assemblies.
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The Ram Nath Kovind-led high-level committee had proposed amendments to Articles 82A and 324A of the Indian Constitution to enable simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha, State Assemblies, and local bodies.
It recommended implementing simultaneous elections in two phases Synchronizing Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies elections, and Synchronizing elections for Municipalities and Panchayats with Lok Sabha and State Legislative elections within 100 days.
The committee also highlighted inefficiencies in electoral roll preparation by State Election Commissions and recommended creating a Single Electoral Roll and Single EPIC for all three tiers of government.
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