New Delhi, Mar 14 (EFE).- A government-appointed panel on Thursday recommended simultaneous regional and national elections in India to reduce costs and enhance transparency.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government had set up the panel in September, which submitted its report to President Droupadi Murmu just days before India embarks on elections to elect a new parliament and subsequently a new government.
In its 18,000-page report, the panel chaired by former president Ram Nath Kovind said that they found unanimity “in the opinion that separate elections cause a waste of resources, result in policy paralysis, and inflict a huge socioeconomic burden on the nation.”
Modi has promised to bring in the so-called “one nation, one election” law, which needs a constitutional amendment and must be passed by the country’s parliament and ratified by states assemblies.
The Hindu nationalist government of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has vowed to combine elections for all local bodies, state assemblies, and the federal parliament.
Indian voters elect their regional assembly and parliamentary representatives every five years. However, elections for state assemblies and local bodies are staggered, occurring when their five-year terms end. This effectively means that polls are taking place somewhere in the country every year.
Between 2019, the date of the last general elections, and 2023, the country held 30 regional elections, according to data from the poll body, and a similar number is expected until 2029.
Indian voters elect their regional assembly and parliamentary representatives every five years.
However, elections for state assemblies and local bodies are staggered, occurring when their five-year terms end. This effectively means that polls are taking place somewhere in the country every year.
“Asynchronous elections cause uncertainty and instability, thwarting supply chains, business investments and economic growth,” said the panel.
The committee proposed that simultaneous elections for parliament and state assemblies be held as the first step.
Subsequently, elections for municipalities and village-level bodies would be synchronized to take place within 100 days of the assembly and parliament elections.
The proposed change will not affect the general elections scheduled between April and May this year. The committee suggested adopting the new system from 2029.
However, “the one nation, one election” idea has raised suspicions among opposition parties, and according to the report itself, 15 out of the 47 consulted groups rejected the proposal.
“They want to completely dismantle (the) constitution, with what objective? One nation, no election – that’s what they want,” opposition Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said. EFE
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