NEW DELHI: The ‘One Nation One Election’ bill has been approved by the Union Cabinet today, paving the way for its introduction in Parliament. However, before its introduction in the Parliament, the bill initiated debate between the ruling and opposition parties.
Several parties of the INDIA bloc opposed the bill while the BJP-led NDA alliance parties welcomed this bill, saying, it would save time and lay the groundwork for unified elections across the country.
BJP leader and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma expressed his full support for the bill, stating that development work gets halted when Assembly and Lok Sabha elections are not held simultaneously.
Speaking to the media, he said, “This should happen… Like simultaneous elections were held in Odisha. When Assembly and Lok Sabha elections are not held together, development work stops. That is why the Prime Minister wants this to happen. We fully support ‘One Nation, One Election.'”
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Dev Sai termed this as a “good decision.”
He said, “This is a very good decision. This will save time as well as money… this will be beneficial for the country.”
CM Sai also hit out at the opposition, saying, “There is nothing to protest against in this. Those who are protesting probably do not want development…”
Haryana Minister Anil Vij welcomed this decision and emphasised that every Indian should welcome this move. Praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his leadership, Vij stated that PM Modi’s nationalist mindset has brought numerous changes and is steering the nation towards ‘Viksit Bharat’ (Developed India).
JD(U) MP Sanjay Kumar Jha also backed the proposed ‘One Nation, One Election’ bill, stating that party supremo Nitish Kumar has always supported simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha. He added that the party had previously voiced its support for the bill and had approached the relevant committee.
LJP (Ram Vilas) MP Shambhavi Choudhary also expressed her support for the bill, highlighting its potential to save time and minimise resource wastage while prioritising the country’s development.
Meanwhile, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh demanded that the proposed ‘One Nation, One Election’ bill be sent to a Joint Parliamentary Committee, asserting that the bill undermines democracy. He remarked, “It is against democracy and the basic structure of the Constitution.”
“The bill will be presented in Parliament, and we want it to be referred to the Joint Parliamentary Committee, which will hold discussions on it. The Indian National Congress’s position was clarified last year by party president Mallikarjun Kharge, who sent a four-page letter to former President Ram Nath Kovind’s committee on One Nation, One Election, stating that we oppose the bill,” Ramesh told ANI.
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari said that the opposition will not let the bill get passed if they find any doubt in it. He also questioned the committee on the ‘One Nation One Election’ bill suggestion that it would increase the GDP by 1-1.5%.
“… What can I say before seeing the draft? If we find something not right in the bill, the opposition will not let it be passed. We can understand that it will save time, but we are unable to understand how it will increase the GDP by 1.5%.” Tiwari said.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee slammed the Centre and said that her party MPs will oppose this “draconian legislation”.
In a post on X, CM Mamata claimed that the bill is not a “carefully-considered reform”, but an “authoritarian imposition”.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin also opposed the Union Cabinet’s approval of the ‘One Nation, One Election’ Bill in Parliament saying that this “impractical and anti-democratic move will erase regional voices, erode federalism, and disrupt governance.”
Stalin called upon the leaders of the INDIA bloc to oppose the bill calling it an attack on Indian Democracy.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren termed the proposed ‘One Nation One Election’ bill as the “BJP’s own agenda” and said that they have the majority and they can take any decision.
“They have the majority; they can take any decision…This is their own agenda. They will work on their agenda, we will work on our agenda,” CM Soren said.
Former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National convenor, Arvind Kejriwal took a dig at the centre over the ‘One Nation, One Election’ Bill, stating that the nation needs “one healthcare system” and “one education system”. He further added that the bill showcases “BJP’s misplaced priorities.”
“The country needs one nation, one education… one nation, one healthcare system…not… one nation, one election… BJP’s misplaced priorities,” Kejriwal posted on X.
Congress MP Imran Masood hit out at the central government over the ‘One Nation One Election’ saying that they brought this issue just to divert attention from the basic issues.
He further said that he doesn’t think that a ‘One Nation One Election’ would become possible in a federal structure.
“Government has decided to conduct new experiments. How will this be possible in a federal structure that 29 states and Centre go together (to polls). If a State Government falls to minority or if the State Government topples due to any reason, what would be the situation? So, I don’t see this possible in federal structure. We will see what the formula of Government would be when they present it…There is no reason behind this – just divert attention from basic issues…” Masood said.
TMC MP Shatrughan Sinha lashed out at the government over the ‘One Nation, One Election’ Bill, calling it a failed attempt to distract people’s attention from the real issues. He further added that the functioning of the Election Commission of India (ECI) is in danger.
Shiv Sena UBT MP Arvind Sawant said that there should be a Joint Parliamentary Committee to address the issue of ‘One Nation One Election’ as it needs elaborate discussions.
“It needs elaborate discussions. It’s not easy. Being a country which believes in Federalism, there are issues which need detailed discussions. JPC should be called to address this issue. There are millions of stakeholders…”
Reacting to the ‘One Nation One Election’, DMK MP T Siva said that let the bill come into the Parliament, the opposition will have a detailed debate on that.
“Let the Parliament approve it. Let it come before the Parliament, we’ll have a detailed debate on that and we will accept it. Of course, they may use their power but DMK has got its reservations. We have got too many number of questions…” he said.
AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi said that One Nation One Election is against the basic structure of our Constitution and against federalism.
“We had represented our party before the former President Ram Nath Kovind-led committee that we are against One Nation One Election because this is against India’s federalism. States are independent units. How will you save money? Fund is allocated for every election. PM says that model code of conduct impacts development work; it is a lie…One Nation One Election is against the basic structure of our Constitution, against federalism. This will weaken regional parties because issues for Vidhan Sabha would be different. It will be different for Lok Sabha elections. Issues for local body elections would be different. It is wrong to hold all these elections together…This is a wrong decision from every aspect. BJP does not want local issues to matter, it is making excuses…”, Owaisi said.
Notably, in September this year, the Union Cabinet approved the ‘One Nation, One Election’ proposal, which aims to hold simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, along with urban body and panchayat polls, within a span of 100 days.
The recommendations were outlined in a report by a high-level panel chaired by former President Kovind.
Following the Cabinet’s approval, Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the decision, calling it a significant step towards enhancing India’s democracy.
“The Cabinet has accepted the recommendations of the High-Level Committee on Simultaneous Elections. I complement our former President, Shri Ram Nath Kovind Ji, for spearheading this effort and consulting a wide range of stakeholders. This is an important step towards making our democracy even more vibrant and participative,” PM Modi posted on X. (ANI)