New Delhi: The political debate regarding one nation, one election has once again intensified. Former Union Minister and senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram has strongly opposed this proposal. While presenting his views before the Joint Committee of Parliament, he termed the plan of holding simultaneous elections of Lok Sabha and State Assemblies as 'monstrous' i.e. very serious and unconstitutional.
Read :- Goes to Hanumangarhi for darshan and comes out and makes fish feast… CM Yogi targets UP Congress President
Chidambaram said that the attempt to hold all elections in the country at the same time is against the basic spirit of the Constitution. According to him, this entire exercise has no solid constitutional basis and its implementation will raise many serious questions.
Told as brainless exercise
According to media reports, Chidambaram expressed this opinion before the Joint Parliamentary Committee, which is reviewing the Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill, 2024 and the 'Union Territory Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024. Through these proposed laws, efforts are being made to make arrangements for simultaneous holding of Lok Sabha and State Assembly elections. The Congress leader told the committee that the idea of holding simultaneous elections is a kind of mindless exercise. Describing both the bills as unacceptable from the point of view of the Constitution, he said that their implementation would be a major change in the constitutional system.
Shortening tenure is against the Constitution: Chidambaram
Read :- Ajay Rai retaliated on the fish feast controversy, said – If I get a photo, I will resign.
Chidambaram also raised the issue of fixed tenure of legislatures in his argument. He said that when an Assembly or Lok Sabha is elected for a five-year term, ending it before the stipulated period raises questions related to the basic structure of the Constitution. According to him, it cannot be considered appropriate to reduce the tenure of any elected house just for the sake of holding the elections on time. He opposed the proposed changes before the committee on this basis.
Conscience does not allow this
The Congress leader also made it clear that he is not in support of these bills. He told the committee that his conscience did not allow him to support this proposal. Chidambaram also raised questions about the government's majority in Parliament. He claimed that the government does not have the required two-thirds majority to pass such a constitutional change.
Elections were held simultaneously from 1951 to 1967
The system of holding Lok Sabha and State Assembly elections simultaneously is not a new thing in India. After independence, from 1951 to 1967, elections for the Lok Sabha and most of the state assemblies were held simultaneously in the country.
However, during 1968 and 1969, some state assemblies were dissolved before the completion of their terms. After this, the cycle of elections started changing and gradually Lok Sabha and Assembly elections started being held at different times. Now, efforts are being made to re-implement this system through the proposal of one nation, one election, but differences among political parties regarding this continue to persist.