A proposal to hold simultaneous federal and state elections - the contentious 'one nation, one poll' proposal - is a long-pending piece of electoral reform and will not damage or tamper with the Constitution, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal told the Lok Sabha Tuesday afternoon.

"Laws can be brought in for electoral reforms... this bill is aligned with the process of easing the electoral process, which will be synchronised. There will be no damage to the Constitution via this Bill. There will be no tampering with the basic structure of the Constitution," Mr Meghwal said.

"We are not tampering with the powers of the states," he asserted, after which he proposed that the bill be sent to a joint parliamentary committee - as was expected - for wider consultation.

Sources told NDTV last night the bill will be sent to a JPC, and that its constitution will be finalised by the end of the day. The ruling BJP, as the single largest party in the House, will hold the maximum seats and lead the committee. MPs will be nominated based on their parties' strength.

Mr Meghwal also pointed out the panel led by ex-President Ram Nath Kovind, which had been tasked with recommending ways to make the 'one nation, one election' proposal a reality, had consulted multiple stakeholders, including various opposition parties, before submitting its report.

After Mr Meghwal's forceful defence, a division of votes was demanded to formally introduce the 'One Nation, One Poll', or ONOP, Bill, to which the Speaker agreed. This was the first time the Lok Sabha  held a division vote for the introduction of a Constitutional Amendment Bill; 269 MPs voted to do so.

The Law Minister's response followed a furious pushback from the opposition after the bill - which seeks to amend the Constitution to permit simultaneous central and state elections - was tabled.

The Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill was swiftly slammed as "beyond the House's legislative competence", "the path to dictatorship", and an assault on the federal nature of the Indian republic.

The fracas began in the post-noon session after Mr Meghwal introduced the bill.

Congress, SP Lead ONOP Pushback

The Congress' Chandigarh MP, Manish Tewari, led the opposition's charge, denouncing the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's flagship 'one nation, one poll' push as a violation of the principles of the Constitution - on which the Lok Sabha held a bitterly-charged and vociferous debate last week.

"Article 1 of the Constitution says '... India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States, affirming its federal character'. This bill, which proposes simultaneous polls, directly challenges this framework by imposing uniformity across states," Mr Tewari said, outlining the first of his party's three objections.

He also argued simultaneous polls would impact the Constitution's basic structure and "undermine elected state governments, weaken grassroots democracy, and encroach on local governance".

The Samajwadi Party's Dharmendra Yadav, Kalyan Banerjee of the Trinamool Congress, and TR Baalu of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam followed, and each was sharply critical. Mr Yadav warned, "This is the path to dictatorship" and Mr Banerjee said it "hits the basic structure of the Constitution".

Mr Baalu flagged the expenditure simultaneous polls entailed, including the Election Commission having to spend ₹ 10,000 crore on new EVMs, or electronic voting machines, every 15 years.

Shiv Sena, NCP, Owaisi Join Protest 

The Shiv Sena group led by former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and its state ally, the Nationalist Congress Party of Sharad Pawar, both also expressed their opposition. The Sena (UBT) called the bill "an attack on federalism", while Ms Sule echoed earlier points of criticism.

Asaduddin Owaisi of the AIMIM rose to make a brief but forceful point, asserting the proposed changes to the Constitution would violate states' right to self-governance. Mr Owaisi also argued, as other opposition leaders have, that simultaneous elections will spell the end of regional parties.

There were, however, also stray voices of support.

"Unwavering Support" From BJP Allies

Two of the BJP's allies - Andhra Pradesh's ruling Telugu Desam Party and the Sena faction of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde - established their backing of the bill.

"We have seen in Andhra Pradesh (that) when simultaneous elections happen... there is clarity of process and governance. That has been our experience and we want that to happen across the country," the TDP's Lavu Sri Krishna Devarayalu said, expressing "unwavering support".

The TDP has 16 Lok Sabha MPs, which, combined with the 12 of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal United, was critical in allowing the BJP to cross the majority mark in the April-June poll.

Also, Andhra Pradesh was one of four states to hold Assembly elections at the same time, this year, as voting for the Lok Sabha. The other three were Sikkim, Odisha, and Arunachal Pradesh.

What Is 'One Nation, One Election'?

Simply put, it means all Indians will vote in Lok Sabha and Assembly elections - to pick central and state representatives - in the same year, if not at the same time. 

As of 2024, only four states voted with a Lok Sabha election - Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, and Odisha voted alongside the April-June Lok Sabha election. Three others - Maharashtra, Haryana, and Jammu and Kashmir - voted in October-November.

The rest follow a non-synced five-year cycle; Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Telangana, for example, were among those voted at different times last year, while Delhi and Bihar will vote in 2025 and Tamil Nadu and Bengal are among those that will vote in 2026.

Can 'One Nation, One Election' Work?

Not without an amendment to the Constitution and that amendment being ratified by the governments of all states and union territories, as well as, possibly, major political parties. 

Source : ndtv