Daijiworld Media Network – Gandhinagar
Gandhinagar, May 20: India could save nearly Rs 7 lakh crore and witness a possible 1.6 per cent boost in GDP if Lok Sabha and State Assembly elections are conducted simultaneously, Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) chairman PP Chaudhary said on Tuesday while backing the proposed ‘One Nation, One Election’ framework.
Chaudhary, who heads the 41-member parliamentary panel examining the proposal, made the remarks after a meeting with Gujarat government officials at GIFT City in Gandhinagar during the committee’s three-day visit to the State.
The JPC, constituted to examine the Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, held discussions with senior officials including Gujarat Chief Secretary M.K. Das, BJP representatives and secretaries of various departments.
Addressing reporters after the meeting, Chaudhary said the Gujarat government had provided valuable inputs on aspects that had not been studied earlier.
“We have instructed them to prepare a comprehensive report, which can later serve as a model for other state governments while submitting their reports,” he said.
According to Chaudhary, the report should evaluate the impact of simultaneous elections on various sectors such as industry, labour migration, employment, GST collections, tourism, education and the overall economy.
“A comprehensive report should be submitted by the chief secretary for further consideration and action. Today's discussions were extremely positive and constructive,” he added.
Highlighting the economic benefits of the proposal, Chaudhary said economists had estimated that simultaneous elections could raise India’s GDP by around 1.6 per cent.
“If simultaneous elections are held, the country could save Rs 7 lakh crore. That money could be utilised for infrastructure, welfare of the poor, education, healthcare and other public welfare initiatives,” he said.
Referring to the Centre’s push for electoral reforms, Chaudhary said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had constituted a committee under former President Ram Nath Kovind to study the issue.
“The Kovind committee also recommended simultaneous elections in its report,” he said.
Chaudhary further stated that constitutional concerns regarding federal structure, basic structure and fundamental rights had been addressed during consultations.
“Six former Chief Justices of India informed the committee that there is no violation of the federal structure, basic structure or fundamental rights in the proposal,” he said.
He added that the Kovind committee had submitted an extensive report of nearly 18,000 pages, recommending synchronised Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, along with panchayat and municipal polls within 100 days of national and state elections.
“This reform would minimise the cycle of continuous elections and allow governments to focus more on governance, development, poverty alleviation, education, healthcare and national progress,” Chaudhary said.
Earlier, he also noted that the proposal had received support from the Law Commission, NITI Aayog policy papers and a Parliamentary Standing Committee comprising members from different political parties.
The JPC has already visited Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and Karnataka as part of its nationwide consultations.
“Our objective is to listen to all stakeholders and take every viewpoint into account before submitting recommendations to Parliament,” Chaudhary added.