Why in the news?

• The Lok Sabha has decided to extend the deadline for the presentation of the Joint Parliamentary Committee’s report on the ‘One Nation, One Election Bill’

One Nation One Election

• What is it?
  • One Nation, One Election refers to the proposal of conducting simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha (the lower house of India’s Parliament) and all state legislative assemblies.
  • The idea seeks to synchronize the electoral calendar across India, ensuring elections are held at the same time across the country. 
• Aim: To reduce the frequency of elections, thus cutting costs and improving governance efficiency.
• Historical Background
  • Simultaneous elections were a common practice in India during the first two decades post-independence, with elections to both the Lok Sabha and state assemblies held together in 1952, 1957, 1962, and 1967.
  • However, the cycle was disrupted due to the premature dissolution of certain state assemblies and the Lok Sabha in the late 1960s and 1970s.
• Need for One Nation, One Election
  • Frequent Elections: Currently, elections are held frequently due to the unsynchronized tenure of the Lok Sabha and state assemblies. This results in multiple elections every year.
  • Reduction in Cost: Simultaneous elections would significantly reduce the overall expenditure on elections, as resources like security personnel, administrative machinery, and logistics would be used more efficiently.
  • Minimization of Disruption: Model Code of Conduct (MCC), which comes into force during elections, restricts government policy-making, leading to Policy Paralysis. This can be avoided with the new system.
  • Political Stability: Frequent elections often lead to short-term populist policies, affecting long-term governance. With fewer elections, governments can focus more on governance and development rather than remaining in constant election mode.
  • Voter Turnout: Holding simultaneous elections could improve voter turnout as people would only need to vote once in a specific election cycle.
• Arguments Against One Nation, One Election
  • Federalism Concerns: Simultaneous elections might undermine the autonomy of state governments by aligning their tenures with the central government. This could dilute the federal structure of India.
  • Logistical Challenges: Conducting elections across the entire country at the same time would require a huge logistical effort in terms of security, deployment of polling staff, and managing voting infrastructure.
  • Premature Dissolution of Assemblies: If a state assembly or the Lok Sabha is dissolved prematurely, it would disturb the synchronized cycle, raising questions about how to handle such scenarios.
  • Voter Behavior: Simultaneous elections might lead to national issues overshadowing local issues, influencing voter behavior and harming the democratic representation of regional concerns.
• Government and Legal Position
  • The Law Commission of India and the NITI Aayog have expressed support for the idea, proposing ways to implement it. However, it requires significant constitutional amendments:
    • Article 83 and Article 172 deal with the tenures of the Lok Sabha and state legislatures, respectively.
    • Article 356 (President’s Rule) may also need reconsideration in cases of premature dissolution of assemblies.
  • A High level Committee was set up by the Union government under the chairmanship of former President of India Shri. Ram Nath Kovind.
    • The committee proposed simultaneous elections for Loksabha, State Assemblies and Local self government institutions of India.