The Central Government can introduce the 'One Nation-One Election' Bill in the current session of the Parliament itself. The bill from Parliament will be referred to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for discussion.
In September, the Union Cabinet approved the proposal of One Nation-One Election. After the Cabinet meeting, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnav said that in the first phase, Assembly and Lok Sabha elections will be held simultaneously. After this, the second phase of civic elections should be held within 100 days.
A committee headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind to deliberate on One Nation One Election submitted its report to President Draupadi Murmu on March 14. This report is of 18 thousand 626 pages.
This panel was created on 2 September 2023. The report is the result of 191 days of research after discussions with stakeholders-experts. The committee has suggested extending the tenure of all assemblies till 2029.
This picture is from March 2024. The report has set a target of simultaneous elections in 2029. Based on that, the model of election of assembly and urban bodies has been given.
5 suggestions in Kovind panel recommendation…
- The tenure of all state legislatures should be extended till the next Lok Sabha elections i.e. 2029.
- In the case of a hung assembly (no one has a majority) and a no-confidence motion, fresh elections may be held for the remainder of the 5-year term.
- In the first phase, Lok Sabha and Assembly elections may be held simultaneously, followed by elections to local bodies within 100 days in the second phase.
- The Election Commission will prepare a single voter list and voter identity card in consultation with the state election authorities for Lok Sabha, Assembly and local body elections.
- The Kovind panel has recommended advance planning of equipment, manpower and security forces to hold elections simultaneously.
Will there be any hurdles in passing the bill into law?
- The Kovind Committee has suggested 18 constitutional changes, most of which do not require the consent of state legislatures.
- Some constitutional changes will require the passage of a bill in Parliament.
- An electoral roll and a single voter ID card would require the approval of more than half of the states.
- It is possible that the Law Commission may also present its report on the Kovind Committee report.
- Sources say that the Law Commission should suggest holding elections to the Lok Sabha, Legislative Assembly, local bodies and panchayats simultaneously in 2029.
- Apart from this, in situations like coalition government and hung legislature, the Law Commission should demand rules.
Currently, the possibility of One Nation-One Election is as follows The tenure of several state legislatures will be shortened to implement one country, one election. In states where assembly elections are scheduled to be held by the end of 2023, their tenure can be extended. The report also said that if all parties agree to the Law Commission's proposal, it will be implemented from 2029 itself. Also, for this, assembly elections will have to be held in 25 states by December 2026.
First Phase: 6 States, Polling: In November 2025
- Bihar: Current term will be completed. The latter will last only three and a half years.
- In Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Puducherry the current tenure will be reduced by 3 years and 7 months. The tenure after that will also be three and a half years.
Second Phase: 11 States, Polling: In December 2026
- Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Manipur, Punjab and Uttarakhand: Current tenure will be reduced by 3 to 5 months. After that it will last two and a half years.
- Gujarat, Karnataka, Himachal, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura: The current tenure will be reduced from 13 months to 17 months. It will last for two and a half years after you.
After these two phases, the tenure of all the assemblies of the country will end in June 2029. According to sources, the Kovind Committee will seek another proposal from the Law Commission, asking it to include local body elections as well.
The committee has 8 members, which was constituted in September 2023 An 8-member committee was formed on September 2 last year under the leadership of former President Kovind. The first meeting of One Nation One Election Committee was held on 23 September 2023 at Jodhpur Officers Hostel, Delhi. It has 8 members including former President Ram Nath Kovind, Home Minister Amit Shah and former MP Ghulam Nabi Azad. Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal has been made a special member of the committee.
What is One Nation One Election? Currently in India, state assembly elections and the country's Lok Sabha elections are held at different times. One Nation One Election means that Lok Sabha and Assembly elections should be held simultaneously across the country. That is, voters will vote on the same day, at the same time or in phases to elect members of the Lok Sabha and state assemblies.
After independence, Lok Sabha and Assembly elections were held simultaneously in 1952, 1957, 1962 and 1967, but in 1968 and 1969, several assemblies were dissolved prematurely. After which the Lok Sabha was also dissolved in 1970. Due to which the tradition of one country, one election was broken.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
