A Utopian Idea?

The theme has been an abiding one for the prime minister. While supporters say it will save public money and reduce administrative burden, critics say it is against the principle of cooperative federalism

- Vivek K Agnihotri

PRIME Minister Narendra Modi recently spoke about the “One Nation, One Election” theory, which has almost become an article of faith for him. “Elections are held at different places every few months. The impact it has on development works is known to all. Therefore, it is a must to have deep study and deliberation on One Nation, One Election,” he said. He also recommended a single voter list for the Lok Sabha, assembly and panchayat polls because separate lists were a waste of resources. This concept has been an abiding theme for Modi. In 2017 too, he had said: “One nation, one election is not a matter of debate only, this is the need for India.”

Historically, elections during the first two decades after Independence for the House of the People and state legislative assemblies were held simultaneously, i.e., during 1951-52, 1957, 1962 and 1967. Dissolution of certain assemblies in 1968 and 1969, followed by the dissolution of the House of the People in 1970 and subsequent general elections in 1971, disturbed the cycle of simultaneous elections. Indis criminate use of Article 356 (President’s Rule) of the Constitution also disrupted the schedule of simultaneous elections.

The talk of “One Nation, One Election” has made the headlines in the past too, from time to time. The idea made its début in the first annual report of the Election Commission in 1983. It had supported holding simultaneous elections to reduce expenditure, for effective use of manpower and human resource and also because frequent elections affected the day-to-day functioning of the government, both at the state level and the centre, creating hardship for common people.