New Delhi, March 9 Former Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad strongly supported the proposal for simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies on Monday, saying that such a move would be in the interest of the country, save time, improve governance, and expedite development.
Appearing before the Joint Committee of Parliament examining bills seeking to introduce simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, Azad also said that he has been a supporter of simultaneous elections since 1983, when the Indira Gandhi government was in power.
"I have been a supporter of 'one nation, one election' for a long time. In 1983, when the Indira Gandhi government was in power, the Election Commission had suggested that the issue of simultaneous elections could be considered. I have supported that idea," he told reporters after appearing before the panel, which is headed by BJP member P P Chaudhary.
The former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir said that the number of elections has increased many times since then, and as the in-charge general secretary of many states of the Congress, he had to deal with the series of elections in those states.
"It often happened that when one election would end, another election would come. The election process was unending. It was very difficult," he said.
Azad said that simultaneous elections would be in the interest of the country.
"Lakhs of officials are involved in elections. If simultaneous elections are held, offices will function, time will be saved, and there will be development and improvement in governance," he said.
Chairman Chaudhary said that Azad had spoken "in the interest of the country" and suggested that everyone should come together for the initiative, setting aside party lines.
He said that time will be saved and government resources will be saved if a single election for both the assembly and the Lok Sabha is held with a single voter list.
"When elections are held at different times, government employees and teachers are deployed. They are given training and that results in suffering of the students as the teachers can not teach the students," he said.
Chaudhary said that even some opposition members sought a single voter list.
"Today's meeting was held in a very cordial manner. I want to thank Azad Saheb," Chaudhary said.
He said that Azad has a long experience. He shared his legal and political experience with the members. He cleared many doubts of the members, Chaudhary said.
"He (Azad) told us that during his time, he had been in campaigning mode for years together," he said.
Chaudhary said that governance does not get priority when elections are held at different times, and members too have realised that 'one nation one election' initiative is in the interest of the country, not for any political party.
"Rising above party lines, all political parties should work for this," he said.
Chaudhary said that former Union law minister and former chief minister of Karnataka M Veerappa Moily was supposed to appear before the committee on Monday but could not do so as he was indisposed.
The Joint Committee on the Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill, 2024, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, was constituted after the two proposed legislations were introduced in the Lok Sabha in December, 2024.
The joint committee has met constitutional experts, economists and the Law Commission chairman among others since it was constituted.
The bills were introduced following a report submitted by a high-level committee on simultaneous elections, headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind.
The Kovind committee was constituted by the government of India on September 2, 2023. Its primary objective was to explore the feasibility of conducting simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies.
It solicited extensive public and political feedback, and consulted with experts to analyse the potential benefits and challenges associated with this proposed electoral reform.
This report presented a detailed overview of the committee's findings, its recommendations for constitutional amendments, and the anticipated impact of simultaneous elections on governance, resources, and public sentiment.