One Nation, One Election: Modi govt to table bills for simultaneous polls in Lok Sabha today — Is it headed for JPC?

The Union Government will introduce the 'One Nation, One Election' Bills, paving the way for simultaneous elections in the Lok Sabha today, according to the revised list of business in the lower House of Parliament.

The two bills approved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Union Cabinet on Thursday include The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024 and the The Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024.

Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal will introduce the two billS, according to the revised list of business for today on the Lok Sabha website. The government had earlier listed the introduction of the two bills for Monday, but reversed its decision later.

After the introduction of the bills today, the Law Minister is expected to request Speaker Om Birla to refer them to a Joint Committee of Parliament (JPC) for wider consultations, according to some reports.

The bills that pave way for unified elections across the nation has been on the agenda of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for quite some time now.

The Winter Session of Parliament that began on November 25 will end on December 20.

‘One Nation, One Election’ not before 2034

Once passed in the Parliament, the Lok Sabha, the Assembly, and the local body (urban or rural) elections will be held in the same year, if not at the same time.

The high-level panel headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind submitted the report in March before the announcement of Lok Sabha elections 2024. The panel said in the report that simultaneous elections could “transform the electoral process.”

The first step is to hold Lok Sabha and Assembly polls together. Local body elections will be held within 100 days, the panel recommended.

If the Bill gets passed without any changes the ‘One Nation, One Election’ initiative could be implemented from 2034.