'One Nation, One Election' vital for economy, governance: BJP's PP Chaudhary

BJP leader and Joint Parliamentary Committee Chairperson on 'One Nation, One Election', PP Chaudhary, on Friday, backed the 'One Nation, One Election' proposal and said simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections are necessary to minimise disruption to governance and save the country from major economic losses. Speaking to ANI about the meetings held over the past three days in Gandhinagar and Ahmedabad on the proposed electoral reform, Chaudhary said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of conducting simultaneous elections is linked to the goal of building a "Viksit Bharat".

"See, regarding the 'One Nation, One Election' meetings held over the last three days in Gandhinagar and Ahmedabad--the vision of Prime Minister Modi to hold Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections simultaneously is aimed at building a Viksit Bharat." He said frequent elections disrupt several sectors, including education, healthcare, governance and industrial production.

"The goal is to ensure that children's education is conducted properly without disruption, that there is no disruption in the medical and health systems, no disruption in production, and no disruption in governance," he said. Highlighting the economic aspect, Chaudhary claimed that holding simultaneous elections could save more than Rs 7 lakh crore for the country's economy.

He further said that simultaneous elections were the norm in India until 1967, after which Assembly dissolutions and imposition of President's Rule under Congress governments led to the separation of Lok Sabha and state Assembly polls. "Previously, this was the practice for 20 years; four general elections were held simultaneously until 1967. During the time of the Congress, in 1967-68, seven state assemblies were dissolved prematurely--before their tenures were completed--and later, due to the imposition of President's Rule, emergencies, and extensions, the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections began to be held separately," he added.

The BJP leader said the committee interacted with various stakeholders, including public sector undertakings, bureaucrats, ministers, banks, civil society representatives and legal experts, who shared concerns about the economic and administrative burden caused by repeated elections. "The economic loss and the loss to governance are massive, and therefore, today, the country is in dire need of this electoral reform," he added. (ANI)

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