Will India have simultaneous polls in 2029? What ‘one nation, one election’ panel recommends

The high-level committee (HLC) on ‘One Nation, One Election’ headed by Ram Nath Kovind has recommended holding simultaneous polls for Lok Sabha and state Assemblies as the first step by 2029 in its report submitted to President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday (14 March). The over 18,000-page report comes after “extensive consultations” with various stakeholders and experts as well as research work of 191 days, a statement said.

The panel has also backed holding municipal corporation and panchayat elections together, within 100 days of the simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. The committee, formed last September, also comprises Union Home Minister Amit Shah, former Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, former Finance Commission chairperson N K Singh, former Lok Sabha Secretary-General Subhash C Kashyap, senior advocate Harish Salve, and former Chief Vigilance Commissioner Sanjay Kothari.

What has the high-level panel said? Why are some political parties opposing One Nation, One Election? Let’s take a closer look.

The ONOP recommendations

The One Nation, One Poll (ONOP) report calls for synchronising national and state Assembly elections. The first step includes amending Article 83 (Duration of Houses of Parliament) and Article 172 (Duration of State Legislatures) and including a new Article to the Constitution — Article 82A. The panel says ratification by the States is not required for this Constitutional Amendment.

To hold simultaneous polls, the panel suggests that the President of India could issue a notification on the date of the first sitting of the newly-formed Lok Sabha after the general elections to enforce Article 82A (1). This date of the notification will be called the “Appointed date”.

“…all the Legislative Assemblies constituted in any general election held after the appointed date shall come to an end on the expiry of the full term of the House of the People (Lok Sabha),” the panel recommends.

Former President of India Shri Ram Nath Kovind who heads High-Level Committee (HLC) on 'One Nation, One Election' presented the report on simultaneous elections in the country to President Droupadi Murmu along with members of the HLC including Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah,… pic.twitter.com/wqlPZ3n0FV

— President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) March 14, 2024

If any State Assembly is dissolved due to a hung House, no-confidence motion, or other such events, fresh polls will be held, with the Assembly tenure ending with that of the lower house of Parliament.

“If, however, the House of the People or a State Legislative Assembly is dissolved sooner than its period of five years from the date appointed for its first meeting, a mid-term election would be held for reconstituting the House or the State Legislative Assembly as the case may be, but the term of the House or the State Legislative Assembly so constituted in a mid-term election, would be for the remaining unexpired period of its term,” the report states.

“In this manner at the end of five years, the House of the People and all the State Legislative Assemblies would reach the end of their tenure at the same time, and be ready for a General election held simultaneously,” the HLC report adds.

Former president Kovind-led committee says that conducting simultaneous elections will “spur development process and social cohesion, deepen foundations of democratic rubric” and “realise the aspirations of India, that is Bharat.”

The panel has also called for the preparation of a single electoral roll and single voter ID cards by the Election Commission of India (ECI), in consultation with the state election authorities. For this, the report recommends amending Article 325 of the Constitution.

A new article – Article 324A – will be included and Article 325 of the Constitution has to be amended for synchronising elections to Municipalities and Panchayats. Article 324A states that elections to local bodies will be held simultaneously with the general elections. This will need ratification by not less than one-half of the states.

Why ONOP is being opposed

Several Opposition parties have rejected the proposal of simultaneous elections . These include Congress, Trinamool Congress (TMC), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Samajwadi Party (SP), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Communist Party of India (CPI).

On the other hand, Janata Dal (United), Biju Janata Dal (BJD), All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), Mizo National Front (MNF), Shiv Sena, and Republican Party of India - Athawale have backed the idea, besides the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Critics argue the move is impractical as holding simultaneous polls would require twice as many electronic voting machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines than are deployed now, reported Indian Express.

To address these logistical issues, the Kovind-led panel recommends that the ECI “may draw a plan and estimate in advance for the procurement of equipment, such as EVMs and VVPATs, deployment of polling personnel and security forces, and make other necessary arrangements”.

Another concern of the parties is that national issues would overwhelm local topics in simultaneous polls, thus harming the federal structure. Regional parties also fear that they will suffer at the cost of national parties that have more resources in such a scenario.

As per India Today, a study by the IDFC Institute in 2015 had found that 77 per cent of electors are likely to cast votes for the same party in case of simultaneous polls. However, only 61 per cent of voters will choose the same party if polls are conducted six months apart.

However, the proponents of ONOP claim this would not be the case.

With inputs from agencies