“SIMULTANEOUS ELECTION IN INDIA: ONE NATION ONE ELECTION”

India is one of the largest democracies in the world and elections are sacrosanct to the idea of

democracy. Conducting the elections is the fundamental basis of a democracy so that a government

may be established to fulfill the basic idea of democracy i.e. 'rule by the people'. The word

democracy was first time used in ancient Athens long back, which is considered the birthplace of

a democratic system. The word democracy has been derived from two Greek words: demos, a

citizen of a city-state, and Kratos, meaning 'power' or 'rule'. It is an electoral system in which

people vote to elect their representatives for Lok Sabha and different state Assemblies (in the case

of Indian states). The fundamental idea of "One Nation, One Election" in India means conducting

simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha (the lower house of the parliament) and all state

legislative assemblies throughout the country. This would mean conducting simultaneous elections

for both governments i.e. national and state governments. Simultaneous elections in India to the

Lok Sabha and all state assemblies happened three successive times after independence.

HISTORICAL BACKDROP OF THE IDEA: India initially had simultaneous elections after

independence but this system gradually eroded as different state assemblies were dissolved at

different times in the history of Indian democracy. The basic idea of "One Nation, One Election"

was initially propagated and communicated by the Election Commission of India (ECI) in 1983

for the first time in the history of one of the largest democracies in the world. However, until 1967,

elections were conducted simultaneously in India.

The first General Elections to the Lok Sabha the lower house of the parliament of India

and all State Legislative Assemblies of the entire country were held simultaneously in 1951-52.

This practice was continued in three consecutive General Elections held in the years 1957, 1962
and 1967 when simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and all state Assemblies were held. However,

due to the before-due-time dissolution of some of the Legislative Assemblies in 1968 and 1969,

the cyclic order of the simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and different state Assemblies was

disturbed. On the other hand, in the year 1970, the Lok Sabha was dissolved before its due time

and fresh elections were held in 1971 which was also the reason for this kind of disruption.

Therefore, till 1970, the First, Second and Third Lok Sabha (lower house of the parliament of

India) enjoyed full five-year terms consecutively.

MEANING OF SIMULTANEOUS ELECTION TO LOK SABHA AND DIFFERENT

STATE ASSEMBLIES: Simultaneous election refers to holding elections to the Lok Sabha the

lower house of the parliament of India and all State Legislative Assemblies, once every five years.

Sometimes it has been observed that some State Legislative Assemblies may happen together with

the elections to Lok Sabha. For example, in 2014, elections to the State assemblies of Odisha,

Andhra Pradesh and Sikkim states were held along with general elections to the Lok Sabha. For

another example, in the year 2024 Lok Sabha Elections it was observed that with Lok Sabha,

simultaneous elections also took place for the four State Assemblies and those states were

Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha, Sikkim and Andhra Pradesh.

OBJECTIVE OF CONDUCTING SIMULTANEOUS ELECTIONS: The main purpose of

holding simultaneous elections for entire country is as under:

● It could lead to higher voter participation in terms of the percentage of polling turnout as

people may need to visit polling booths less frequently.

● Less frequent elections might reduce the influence of money and criminal elements in the

electoral process.
 ● Simultaneous polls could allow for more efficient use of security personnel and other

forces.

● Voters might be able to consider both national and state issues together, potentially leading

to more informed voting decisions which would help in ensuring more involvement of

voters in decision making.

● Election officials and government employees who are conducting elections would face

comparatively less frequent disruptions to their regular duties.

● Political Parties might be able to reduce their campaign expenditure.

DIFFICULTIES IN HOLDING SIMULTANEOUS ELECTIONS TO LOK SABHA AND

STATE ASSEMBLIES:

● Deployment of defense forces and other para-military forces in large numbers

throughout the country.

● The ECI felt that it would require large-scale purchase of Electronic Voting Machines

(EVM) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines.

● The ECI expects that approximately a total of Rs. 9000 crores will be needed for

the procurement of EVM and VVPAT machines.

● The so-procured machines would also need to be replaced every fifteen years which

would again require a large amount of expenditure also increase the warehousing cost

CONTENTION FOR SIMULTANEOUS ELECTIONS: The following logic and arguments

may be given against elections to Lok Sabha and all State Legislative Assemblies in the country

simultaneously:
● Holding simultaneous elections once in five years may also face logistical challenges for

different reasons. For the free and fair conduct of the elections, security forces need to be

deployed in large numbers in those regions where the election is to be held. Looking at the

current strength of security personnel in the country, this may be a challenging task for the

ECI to hold free and fair election simultaneous elections.

● Article 83(2) and Article 172 of the Indian Constitution require that the Lok Sabha and

State Legislatures be in existence for a term of five years from the date of its first meeting,

“unless dissolved earlier”. On the other hand, simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and

all State Legislative Assemblies ignore this basic concept, as there would be no possibility

to dissolve Lok Sabha or State Assemblies.

● As per the constitutional provision of India, Center and States are equal and sovereign

within their jurisdiction. Therefore, it can be said that simultaneous elections may reduce

the importance of state elections. Thus, it may destroy the federal structure of the country.

● Elections are an important part of representative democracy like India which has been duly

adopted in our constitution. Simultaneous elections with a fixed tenure of five years curtail

people’s right to express their confidence or displeasure with the existing government.

● It is also a fact that simultaneous elections may reduce the expenditure incurred by the ECI.

● Simultaneous elections will relegate local issues or issues of state importance to the

background. This may completely ignore the basic nature of the diversity of the country.

● A government can be in power as long as it enjoys the confidence of Parliament which

could be proved on the floor of the house. Simultaneous elections can work only if

governments last for a fixed tenure of five years regardless of the confidence of Parliament

which is not assumed good for a democracy. It negates the concept of a ‘no-confidence
 motion’ – an important tool for legislative control over the executive and it is a tool in the

hands of opposition to put pressure on the government.

RECOMMENDATIONS SUBMITTED BY HIGH-LEVEL COMMITTEE ON “ONE

NATION ONE ELECTION”: The High-Level Committee (HLC) under the chairmanship of

former President Shri Ram Nath Kovind, submitted its report on March 14, 2024, on the possibility

and feasibility of conducting simultaneous polls to Hon’ble President of India Droupadi Murmu.

● This report contains 18,626 pages covering 11 chapters along with annexures and has been

prepared after extensive and deep consultations with different stakeholders and experts for

191 days.

● The panel recommended that simultaneous elections in the country as the first step

followed by synchronized local body polls within 100 days.

● In a meeting the Union Cabinet chaired by the Hon’ble Prime Minister has accepted the

recommendations made by the High-Level Committee on holding simultaneous elections

to the Lok Sabha and all State Legislative Assemblies and local bodies.

● The Committee suggests an amendment in Article 82A of the Constitution of India to

empower the President of India to designate an "Appointed Date" for the commencement

of simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha (House of the People) and Legislative

Assemblies of different states.

● If the recommendations are accepted and implemented it is assumed that the first

simultaneous elections in the country could potentially be held in 2029.

CONCLUSION: No doubt holding simultaneous elections can save time and resources in many

ways, but it may also impact the government's accountability to the people. It is essential to weigh
these advantages and disadvantages before implementing such a system. Public consultations,

experts and different stakeholders’ opinions must be considered to ensure the best possible

outcome for the country’s democratic process. The government has invited suggestions from the

citizens of India regarding the implementation of the One Nation, One Election policy and it was

observed that over 21,000 suggestions have been received out of that approximately eighty percent

of voters voted in favor of the “One Nation, One Election plan”. Therefore, it can be concluded

that simultaneous elections will be a revolutionary initiative by the government.

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