Modi Cabinet approves One Nation, One Election for India, bill for simultaneous polls likely soon

The Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Cabinet on Thursday approved the One Nation, One Election bill and it is likely to be tabled in the ongoing Winter Session of the Parliament.

After being tabled in the Parliament, the bill will be passed to a joint parliamentary committee. The bill will also be reviewed by speakers of all state assemblies apart from experts and members of civil societies.

Earlier this year, a high-level committee headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind recommended simultaneous polls for the Lok Sabha, state assemblies and local bodies to streamline the election process.

The recommendations by the committee were by the government a few weeks ago but it was met with scepticism by the Opposition INDIA bloc.

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Since coming to power in 2014, the Modi government has advocated the practice of holding parliamentary, state and local body elections at the same time.

What is One Nation, One Election?

Currently, India holds separate elections for Lok Sabha and state assemblies every five years or in cases where a government is dissolved prematurely.

The Bharatiya Janata Party and its NDA partners have been suggesting to hold all polls together to cut down on expenses, enhance administrative efficiency and improve logistics. Simultaneous elections can also result in higher voter turnout.

The concept of simultaneous elections originated with the first general elections in 1951-52, which were held alongside all Vidhan Sabha elections. This practice persisted until 1967 when the emergence of hung assemblies disrupted the pattern.

How will the bill work?

The Kovind-led panel, in its report, said that to bring One Nation, One Election into force, 18 amendments will be required to the existing laws while the Constitution would need 15 amendments.

The ruling NDA enjoys a majority in both the Houses of Parliament, but achieving the required numbers for the Constitutional amendments could pose a challenge.

In the Rajya Sabha, NDA holds 112 seats, but it requires 164 for a two-thirds majority. Meanwhile, in the Lok Sabha, 364 votes are required and the coalition has 292 seats.