What is 'One Nation, One Election'—an ambitious promise Modi govt intends to fulfil in its 3rd term

The EC is now responsible for the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls, while the local body polls for municipalities and panchayats are managed by state election commissions.

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday paved way for simultaneous elections as it gave nod to the “one nation, one election” proposal.

This comes just a day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the government will implement “one nation, one election” in this term. The panel headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind had submitted the report of the high-level committee to the Union Cabinet on Wednesday.

The Bill is likely to be introduced in the Parliament during the upcoming winter session

In his first Independence Day speech of his third term, PM Modi last month made a strong pitch for "One Nation, One Election" yet again, saying that frequent polls were creating hurdles in the country's progress. He has often spoken about bringing the country out of the endless cycle of elections, which leads to a wastage of resources and money.

In March 2024, a high-level committee on 'One Nation, One Election' led by former President Ram Nath Kovind submitted a report supporting the idea.

It said that frequent elections create an atmosphere of uncertainty and impact policy decisions, adding that holding simultaneous elections would bring enhanced certainty in policy making.

While highlighting the advantages of simultaneous elections, the committee said that 'One Nation, One Election' ensures ease and convenience to voters, avoids voters' fatigue, and facilitates greater voter turnout.

The panel said that Lok Sabha and state assembly elections can be held together, followed by synchronised local body polls within 100 days.

What is the concept of "One Nation, One Election"?

The basic idea of "One nation, One Election" is to conduct Lok Sabha as well as state assembly polls simultaneously. Currently, Lok Sabha elections are fixed to a five-year term and state assemblies have varying election schedules depending on their dissolution or other factors. This means that both elections are held at different times. Each state's legislative assembly has its own tenure, leading to elections being scheduled at different intervals across states.

Read also: What Kovind-led panel has proposed if there's Hung Parliament or assembly

This means that elections to some or the other state assembly is held every year. Later this year, Maharashtra and Jharkhand are scheduled to go to polls. In 2025, elections will be due in Delhi and Bihar.

Arguments in favour of simultaneous polls:

• Reduction in the cost of conducting elections

• Easing the burden on administrative and security forces who otherwise are engaged multiple times in election duties

• Government can focus more on governance rather than being in an election mode

• Simultaneous elections, according to the Law Commission, will increase voter turnout because it will be more easy for people to cast many ballots at once.

Arguments against simultaneous polls:

• Changes would be required in the Constitution and other legal frameworks (The Kovind panel report said that a Constitution Amendment Bill will have to be introduced in Parliament amending Article 83 (Duration of Houses of Parliament) and Article 172 (Duration of State Legislatures). This Constitutional Amendment will not seed ratification by the states)

• Regional issues might get overshadowed by the national issues if elections are held together

• Agreement among all political parties remains a significant hurdle

Countries where simultaneous elections are held:

Countries where simultaneous elections are conducted are South Africa, Sweden, Belgium, Germany, Japan, Indonesia, the Phillipines.

Before submitting its report, the Kovind-led panel studied election processes in six countries including South Africa, Sweden and Belgium.

For instance, in South Africa, voters cast their ballots for both the National Assembly and Provincial Legislatures simultaneously. However, municipal elections are held separately from provincial ones in a five-year cycle.

The panel noted that Sweden follows the proportional electoral system, which means that political parties are assigned a number of seats in the elected assembly based on their share of votes.

(With inputs from agencies)