First JPC Meet On Simultaneous Polls Concludes, Members Handed Over 18,000-Page Report In Suitcase

First JPC Meet On Simultaneous Polls Concludes, Priyanka Asks 'Key Question' On EVMs, Members Get 18,000 Page Report In Suitcase

The Joint Parliamentary Committee constituted to scrutinise the two bills on the 'One Nation One Election' held its first meeting on Wednesday.

While the BJP MPs called the bills a necessity for the nation, the opposition members criticized the bills, claiming they would infringe on the rights of states.

During the first meeting, the officials from the Law Ministry briefed the committee members on the report prepared by Ram Nath Kovind committee. The officials also reportedly explained the provisions of the proposed bills to the members. 

How Many EVMs Would Be Required? Priyanka Gandhi Asks

During the meeting, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi raised the question on the number of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) required to hold simultaneous elections for Lok Sabha and state assemblies. 

The Congress MP questioned if simultaneous elections would be economically viable and how many EVMs would be required for the polling in one go. Priyanka claimed that the expenditure figures quoted by the government were before the EVMs were first introduced in 2004, according to News18.

'Large Suitcase' Handed To JPC Members

After the meeting, the committee members were handed over more than 18,000 pages of documents in a large suitcase. Aam Aadmi Party MP Sanjay Singh shared a picture with the suitcase.

"The JPC on 'One Nation, One Election' (ONOE) has received a report spanning thousands of pages. The first meeting of the ONOE JPC was held today," Singh posted on X.

Supporting MPs Cite Example Of Maharashtra And Haryana

The MPs in support of 'One Nation One Election' argued that until 1967, the country had simultaneous elections without any objections. The MPs questioned why the opposition is not questioning the ONOE as an infringement on state rights now, according to sources.

The MPs, in support of the ONOE, also cited the example of 1957, when 6-7 state assemblies were dissolved prematurely to conduct simultaneous elections. At that time, the chairperson of the Constituent Assembly was serving as the President of India.

Meanwhile, the MPs also discussed the examples of states— Maharashtra, Haryana, and Jharkhand — where assembly elections are held within months of the Lok Sabha elections, followed by local body elections. 

The Parliamentary committee, comprising of 39 members, is examining two bills- the Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, which were introduced in the Lok Sabha during the recent Winter Session and referred to the committee.

Headed by BJP MP PP Chaudhary, the joint committee of Parliament comprises members from all major parties, including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra from Congress, Sanjay Jha from JD(U), Shiv Sena's Shrikant Shinde, AAP's Sanjay Singh, and Kalyan Banerjee from Trinamool Congress.

The government decided to increase the committee's strength from 31 to 39, as more political parties expressed their desire to be part of the exercise to examine the two draft legislations on simultaneous elections.

Former Union ministers Anurag Thakur, Parshottam Rupala and Manish Tewari, along with several other lawmakers, including Anil Baluni, Bansuri Swaraj and Sambit Patra, are also members of the committee.The panel has 27 members from the Lok Sabha, and 12 from the Rajya Sabha.