One Nation One Election: Kovind-Led Panel Submits Report On Simultaneous Polls To President Murmu

The report on 'One Nation One Election' has been submitted to President Droupadi Murmu by the high-level committee.

The panel submitted its report on 'One Nation One Election' to President Droupadi Murmu

Source : PTI

The Ramath Kovind-led panel to examine the possibility of a 'One Nation One Election' in the country has submitted its report to President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday, reported news agency ANI. The committee met the President in Rashtraparti Bhawan and submitted its report comprising 18,626 pages. 

The committee received 21,558 responses through e-mail, website and by post on conducting simultaneous polls in the country. 

Of the total responses received, around 80 per cent were in favour of conducting simultaneous polls in the country, as per ABP News sources, adding that the responses came from almost all the parts of the country including Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar, Nagaland, Dadra and Nagar Haveli among others. 

The most number of responses were sent from Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Kerala, West Bengal, Gujarat, and Uttar Pradesh, they said.

47 political parties also responded to the idea of conducting simultaneous polls to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies which except for 15 parties, 32 were in favour of such a system. 

Parties in favour of 'One Nation One Election' advocated the adoption of this option to save limited resources, maintain social harmony and accelerate economic development while the parties against it raised the issue that adopting this option would violate the basic structure of the Constitution.

They said it would be undemocratic, contrary to the federal structure, alienating regional parties and increasing the dominance of national parties and would result in President's rule.

The Committee also considered all the constitutional and legal objections that were raised by some stakeholders against the holding of simultaneous elections. 

Similarly, the Committee examined not only the administrative and logistics costs associated with frequent elections but also its impact on economic growth, investment decisions, time cost of deferred economic decisions and overall social relations. It also examined the constitutional and legal issues related to elections.