The issue of One Nation-One Election is hot in the country. And it is for the very right reasons. It has natural ramifications for the politics and economy of Bharat. Let us see the clear benefits of going in for the proposed system at this critical juncture in the history of our nation. Many nations are using the One Nation-One Election system very successfully.
Many obvious, clear benefits and points in favour of the proposed One Nation-One Election system can be observed.
It will save time and money and the bureaucratic work of election commissions, both at the centre and in the states. The savings in time and operational expenditure of elections is of considerable significance when deeply viewed. We must consider the time value of money here.
The savings in time and monetary expenditure in canvassing and campaigning by-election candidates are of far greater magnitude and significance than the savings effected in the first point above. It is an open secret that elections in our country are a humongous time and money-spending activity. The actual money spent on election campaigning is many times over the maximum amount prescribed by the Election Commission. This stark reality is perhaps the soundest justification for the system of One Nation-One Election. If we were to gauge the savings of election contesting candidates’ monetary expenditure, it would work out to stupendous amounts. Who doesn’t know that black money to the tune of several crores is regularly spent for election to each seat in the Lok Sabha as well as the State Assemblies?
The above-mentioned savings in expenditure will considerably reduce black money generation for election purposes. It is anybody’s guess how much total amount is spent by political parties during general elections and state assembly elections. We heard it is of the order of hundreds and thousands of crore rupees. The illegal activities pursued by business houses to generate this black money will get a severe dent. More importantly, such dubious schemes like Electoral Bonds will be obviated.
Political corruption, as well as bureaucratic corruption, has its roots in huge black money spent in elections. This, however, does not preclude the other causes of economic corruption in the country—the faulty, archaic administrative and legal systems operating in the country even 77 years after political independence.
Most important is the fact that the proposed One Nation—One Election scheme will enable better focus and attention by the governments on governance. In the absence of this system, governments appear to be perennially in the electioneering mode. The State Chief Ministers and Cabinet Ministers, and at the centre, the PM and his Cabinet colleagues get involved in electioneering activity, which distracts them from serious governance. We have seen this happening during the last 50 years and have been wondering how and why our nation took the retrograde step of switching over from the simultaneous/concurrent mode to the existing mode in 1967.
In China, we have a big adversary, and no such system of regular democratic elections prevails. That itself gives it an edge in the quality of governance. The coming decades are challenging. There are serious security issues confronting us. The security here connotes not just the security of geographical borders but also other types of security—economic security and cyber security. Let us narrow down this edge that China has in quality of governance to the extent possible.
Another incidental advantage of the One Nation—-One Election system is that it will provide more stable and enduring governments. The elections to Parliament and State Assemblies will throw up more winning candidates from key national-level political parties in the wake of the prevailing popular perceptions of the electorate at one point in time. This will give solid majority governments in place of the weak and shaky coalition governments, which are often based on compromised principles.
Many nations are using the One Nation-One Election system very successfully. The high-level Committee in India on One Nation- One Election studied election processes in seven countries, which include South Africa, Sweden and Belgium. It recommended simultaneous polls for Lok Sabha and State Assemblies in India, according to the Committee’s report approved by the Union Cabinet on September 18, 2024. Simultaneous elections are also conducted in Germany, Japan, Indonesia, and the Philippines. The Committee headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind had submitted its report to President Droupadi Murmu in March 2024 recommending simultaneous elections for Lok Sabha and State Assemblies with subsequent synchronised local body polls within 100 days.
As per the polls by the public of India, it seems as if the people of the country are ready to welcome such a scheme. Far more than 20,000 suggestions have been received in the polls. Out of the total suggestions, nearly 81 per cent have voted in favour of the One Nation-One Election system.
The above observations convey that nationalistic denizens of the esteemed legislating houses of this country should not think twice before approving this proposal in Bill form.
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