ONE NATION ONE ELECTION BILL

Why in News: Former Chief Justices raised concerns before the JPC, warning that giving sweeping powers to the Election Commission could violate constitutional principles.

About ONOE Bill

The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024 proposes amendments and new article to enable simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies.

One Nation One Election Bill Implementation

The implementation of the One Nation, One Election policy is not feasible within the current constitutional framework.

To enable this policy, certain essential amendments to the Constitution are necessary, including:

• Article 83: Concerning the duration of the Houses of Parliament, amendments are required to fix the tenure and timing for the dissolution of the Lok Sabha.
• Article 85: Pertaining to sessions, prorogation, and dissolution of Parliament, clear guidelines must be established to prevent arbitrary or ambiguous dissolution of sessions.
• Article 172: Governing the duration of State Legislatures, amendments are needed to synchronize their tenure with that of the Lok Sabha.
• Article 174: Similar to Article 85, this article deals with sessions, prorogation, and dissolution of State Legislatures. Amendments are required to standardize procedures and timelines.

About simultaneous elections

• Simultaneous Elections (popularly known as One Nation, One Election) means holding elections to the House of the People, all the State Legislative Assemblies, and local bodies i.e., Municipalities and Panchayats, together
• Local bodies are not included in the bill.
• Simultaneous elections do not mean that voting across the country for all elections needs to happen on a single day.

Need for Simultaneous Elections

1. Financial Burden
   • Holding general and state polls together could slash administrative and logistical costs— deployment, polling booths, manpower—saving up to ₹50,000 crore annually  .
2. Economic Stability
   • Staggered elections introduce uncertainty—hurting supply chains, investments, and GDP growth—while synchronization supports continuous economic progress  .
3. Governance Continuity
   • Frequent cycles enforce the Model Code of Conduct repeatedly, leading to policy paralysis and stalling development; simultaneous polls ensure a sustained five-year window for governance  .
4. Voter Participation
   • Staggered elections cause ‘voter fatigue’, lowering turnout; consolidating polls into one

event boosts engagement and participation  .

5. Operational Efficiency
   • A unified schedule reduces election-related disputes, legal cases, and burdens on the judiciary; it also streamlines resource deployment and improves administrative focus  .
6. Security & Resource Optimization
   • Combining elections means fewer deployments of security forces and poll staff, freeing them to focus on primary duties—crucial for resource-constrained states  .

Issues Involved in Simultaneous Elections

1. Constitutional Challenges
   • Misuse of President’s Rule (Article 356) to delay state polls and enforce synchronization—this could undermine federal autonomy  .
   • Altering terms of state assemblies under Article 172 without state ratification diminishes the voice of states in federal setup  .
2. Logistical Challenges
   • India’s massive electorate (~960 million voters as of 2024) means over a million polling booths and vast security personnel mobilization—admin capacity could be overwhelmed

 .

3. Federalism Concerns
   • Centralizing election schedules risks marginalizing smaller regional parties and relegating state issues to the national agenda, weakening state autonomy  .
4. Impact on Voter Behavior
   • Simultaneous polls could trigger a “coattail effect,” where national issues overshadow local ones; data suggests a ~77 % alignment between Lok Sabha and Assembly votes when held together  .
5. Legal & Parliamentary Hurdles
   • Requires amending multiple constitutional articles (83, 172, 327, etc.) and rewriting the Representation of Peoples Act, 1951—a complex, time-consuming process needing broad consensus  .
6. Democratic Accountability & Political Dynamics
   • Frequent polls allow voters to hold governments accountable mid-term; simultaneous elections could  mask underperformance and reduce scrutiny  .

Conclusion:

Simultaneous elections can improve efficiency and reduce costs, but they also pose challenges to federalism, logistics, and political balance. A cautious, consultative approach is essential to ensure democratic integrity while pursuing reform.