One Nation One Election

One Nation One Election is the concept of synchronizing election of both the Indian Parliament that is the Lower house- Lok Sabha and all the State Assemblies. The bill aims to hold the election simultaneously, either on the same day or in a single time frame. Among all other discussions around the country the latest is the Report on the matter has been submitted by the committee under the leadership of former President of India Sri Ramnath Kovind.

'One Nation One Election' is among the critical reforms of the current Indian govt under PM Modi. In fact, the former President of India, Ram Nath Kovind, in his address to Parliament in January 2018, mentioned this as one of the reforms proposed by the government. In India the concept of 'One Nation One Election' has been in discussion since 1983 which was proposed by the then Election Commissioner of India. However, before 1967 India always had simultaneous election until the cycle was disrupted with the early dissolution of some State Assemblies in 1968 and 1969.

Resurfacing the 'One Nation One Election'

Being the part of Government's critical reforms the discussion on the idea of the 'One Nation One Election' resurfaced in September 2023. In September the Government of India established a high-level committee on ONOE which was Chaired by the former President Sri Ramnath Kovind. Since then, the committee has convened multiple times and gathered opinions from different stakeholders. 

The Kovind Panel

A high-level committee headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday submitted the ONOE report to the President Droupadi Murmu Recommending simultaneous elections for Lok Sabha and State assemblies as the first step.

The committee's report, which encompasses over 18,000 pages, advocates for concurrent elections as a catalyst for development and social unity, strengthening the 'foundation of democracy', and fulfilling the ambitions of "India, that is Bharat".

A total of 47 political parties and 21,558 individual public responses were garnered nationwide. Of these, 80 percent endorsed the concept of simultaneous elections.

Key Suggestion of the Panel

• The panel found that the discontinuation of the simultaneous elections in the decades following India's independence has negatively impacted the economy, politics, and the society. The current scenario of multiple elections throughout the year places a significant burden on the government, businesses, citizens, and various other entities. To address this, the committee recommended establishing a legally viable mechanism to restore simultaneous election.
• The committee has recommended holding simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies as the first step. Subsequently, elections for Municipalities and Panchayats would be synchronized with the General Elections ensuring that they take place within 100 days of main elections.
• To facilitate the synchronization of election the committee recommended that the President of India, through a notification issued on the first sitting of the Lok Sabha post a general election, set an appointed date. The date would mark the commencement of the new electoral cycle.
• The tenure of the State legislative Assemblies formed after the 'appointed date' and the before the completion of the Lok Sabha's term would conclude before the subsequent general elections. Following this, all general elections for the Lok Sabha and State assemblies  would be held simultaneously.
• An Implementation Group is proposed to oversee the execution of the committee's recommendation.
• The Panel has recommended certain amendments to the constitution, including the introduction of Article 324A for simultaneous elections in panchayats a Muncipalities and amendments to Article 325 for a single electoral roll and single elector's photo identity card, were proposed. These amendments would require ratifications by the States.
• The committee also addresses scenarios of a Hung House or a No-Confidence motion, proposing the fresh elections may be conducted to form a new house. Constitutional amendments to Article 83 and Article 172 would be required for this, withouit the need for the state ratification.
• To manage logistical aspects of simultaneous elections, the election commission would need to plan in advance for equipment procurement, polling personnel deployment, and security arrangements.
• The committee has also recommended a single electoral roll and Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC) for use in elections to all three tiers of the Government.

Hence, the upcoming elections where Lok Sabha as well as the State Assemblies elections of Four State would act as a preceding for having One Nation One Election.