What Is The Task Of 'One Nation, One Election' Committee? What We Know, So Far

The Union Law Ministry on Saturday notified the eight-member high-level committee (HLC) to set up a panel under former president Ram Nath Kovind to examine the feasibility of 'One Nation, One Election'.

The 'One Nation, One Election' concept in India aims to synchronise elections for the Lok Sabha (the lower house of India's Parliament) and all state assemblies. The idea is to hold these elections simultaneously, either on a single day or within a specific time frame.

Who Are The Members Of The Committee?
The committee will be headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind and will have Home Minister Amit Shah, former leader of the opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and former Finance Commission chairman N K Singh as members.

Although Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury was also included in the panel, he has refused to be part of the committee.

In a letter addressed to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said, "I have no hesitation whatsoever in declining to serve on the committee whose terms of reference have been prepared in a manner to guarantee its conclusions. It is, I am afraid, a total eyewash," he added.

"Moreover, the sudden attempt to thrust a constitutionally suspect, pragmatically non-feasible and logistically unimplementable idea on the nation, months before the general elections, raises serious concerns about ulterior motives of the government," Adhir stated.

"Furthermore, I find that the current LOP in the Rajya Sabha has been excluded. This is a deliberate insult to the system of Parliamentary democracy. In these circumstances, I have no option but to decline your invitation," he added.

However, the panel will also have former Lok Sabha Secretary General Subhash C Kashyap, senior advocate Harish Salve and former Chief Vigilance Commissioner Sanjay Kothari as members.

Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal will attend the meetings of the committee as a special invitee, while Legal Affairs Secretary Niten Chandra will be secretary to the panel.

The Task Of The Committee

(a) examine and make recommendation for holding simultaneous elections to the House of the People (Lok Sabha), State Legislative Assemblies, Municipalities and Panchayats, keeping in view the existing framework under the Constitution of India and other statutory provisions, and for that purpose, examine and recommend specific amendments to the Constitution, the Representation of the People Act, 1950, the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and the rules made thereunder and any other law or rules which would require amendments for the purpose of holding simultaneous elections;

(b) examine and recommend, if the amendments to the Constitution would require ratification by the States;

(c) analyse and recommend possible solution in a scenario of simultaneous elections emerging out of hung House, adoption of no-confidence motion, or defection or any such other event;

(d) suggest a framework for synchronisation of elections and specifically, suggest the phases and time frame within which simultaneous elections may be held if they cannot be held in one go and also suggest any amendments to the Constitution and other laws in this regard and propose such rules that may be required in such circumstances;

(e) recommend necessary safeguards for ensuring the continuity of the cycle of simultaneous elections and recommend necessary amendments to the Constitution, so that the cycle of simultaneous elections is not disturbed;

(f) examine the logistics and manpower required, including EVMs, VVPATs, etc., for holding such simultaneous elections;

(g) examine and recommend the modalities of use of a single electoral roll and electoral identity cards for identification of voters in elections to the House of the People (Lok Sabha), State Legislative Assemblies, Municipalities and Panchayats.