The ‘One Nation, One Election’ proposal, Siddaramaiah said, is a 'gimmick', a desperate attempt by the 'Modi government to divert attention from its colossal failures.'
Published Dec 12, 2024 | 11:00 PM ⚊ Updated Dec 12, 2024 | 11:01 PM
Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah. (X)
The contentious One Nation, One Election Bill received the approval of the Union cabinet on Thursday, 12 December, 2024.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramiah took to X to post his vehement opposition: “The Union cabinet’s approval of the ‘One Nation, One Election’ Bill is not only an assault on parliamentary democracy and the federal structure of India but also a sinister conspiracy to curb the rights of states.”
The chief minister made it clear that he would do all in his power to oppose the Bill.
In a long post, he said the electoral process in India is in dire need of reform; he was obliquely referring to the controversies that dogged state assembly polls in recent months. Analysts have also pointed to discrepancies in the results of the general elections, 2024.
“At a time when the current electoral system is in dire need of reforms, such a bill will only weaken the foundations of democracy further. Before approving such a bill, the Modi government should have consulted opposition parties and state governments. However, true to its authoritarian tendencies, the BJP-led Central government is trying to impose this undemocratic proposal on the country,” the chief minister said.
Siddaramiah’s reference to “authoritarian tendencies” is a reminder of the lack of consultation ahead of the decision to announce abrupt demonetisation of currency notes in November 2016, during Prime Minister Modi’s first term in office – at that time, it was known that the plan was kept secret; it was widely speculated that even many members of the Union cabinet were in the dark.
A similar abrupt announcement on TV was all the warning citizens received ahead of the massive lockdown of the country in March 2020, in response to what was claimed to be a global pandemic.
In October 2024, the Kerala legislative assembly passed a unanimous resolution opposing One Nation, One Election.
Presenting that resolution, Kerala’s parliamentary affairs minister MB Rajesh explained that the proposed bill violated the Indian Constitution and was part of the Union government’s moves to centralise power.
Rajesh suggested that the Union government, instead of taking such drastic measures in the name of curtailing expenses on elections, could take more rational and smaller steps to curb wasteful expenditure.
Chief Minister Siddaramiah made it clear that his government too would consider the adoption of a resolution like the one passed in Kerala.
Under the Constitution, state governments conduct elections to the local bodies under their jurisdiction; taking away this function from state governments would be a curtailment of their powers.
In the first two decades of Independence, simultaneous polls was the norm – after four electoral cycles, however, some state governments were dissolved; the Lok Sabha was prematurely adjourned in 1970. The era of simultaneous polling ended.
Siddaramiah noted that the proposed law does not adequately account for occasions when the government at the Centre or state loses majority; allowing a minority government to continue to hold office would be “nothing short of a treachery against democracy,” he posted.
The proposed law states that in case of a hung house or a no-confidence motion that has passed, new elections would be called. However, the term of the newly elected government would end when the general (simultaneous) elections are held.
Critics point out that besides requiring amendments to the Constitution for this to come into effect, it would curtail the term in office of an elected government.
Siddaramiah also pointed out that implementing the process laid down in the proposed law would require amendments to the Representation of the People Act and several other important laws.
He noted that the Election Commission lacks “capacity and resources” to conduct simultaneous polls across the country. The ‘One Nation, One Election’ proposal, the chief minister said, is a “gimmick”, a desperate attempt by the “Modi government to divert attention from its colossal failures.”
The proposed Bill is aimed at synchronised elections across the country, for the Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies; even local self-government institutions like panchayats and municipalities would eventually be covered by this process of synchronisation.
This has led some commentators to ask if elections to Resident Welfare Associations too would feature in the centralisation process.
Several Opposition parties have already expressed vehement opposition to the proposed changes, which they say curtails democracy and reduces the power of states, damaging federalism.
In September this year, the Union government approved the recommendations of a committee led by former president Ram Nath Kovind to suggest measures to synchronise polls for the Centre, states, and local government bodies.
This is perhaps the first time that a former president has performed such a role, post retirement. Commentators noted that by bringing in a former president, the government was attempting to silence critics.
The Kovind committee suggested the unification of voter rolls and photo identity cards for all elections, and cited the need to amend Article 325 of the Constitution for this purpose. (This Article mandates one general electoral roll for every territorial constituency for election to either House of Parliament or to the House or either House of the Legislature of a state; no person shall be ineligible for inclusion in these rolls on the grounds of religion, race, caste or sex.)
Eight state election commissioners (SEC) had been consulted by the Kovind committee that recommended simultaneous polls.
Tamil Nadu SEC V. Palanikumar, who disapproved the idea, cited the pervasive dominance of national issues over regional ones as a reason for objecting; the four former chief election commissioners who expressed approval for the idea on being consulted by the Kovind committee were all appointed during the Modi regime and there were question marks over their independence from government.
(Edited by Rosamma Thomas).
