New Delhi: The government’s push for ‘One Nation One Election’ has drawn flak from the Opposition, especially Congress party.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday said that the Centre aims to turn the country into a ‘dictatorship’ by implementing ‘One Nation One Election’ plan.
Rahul Gandhi also slammed the proposal, for which a high-level committee has been set up headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind.
“INDIA, that is Bharat, is a Union of States. The idea of ‘one nation, one election’ is an attack on the Union and all its States,” Rahul wrote on X.
Kharge also took to the microblogging site to express his views, calling the committee a ‘gimmick.’
“Modi Govt wants Democratic India to slowly turn it into a Dictatorship.”
“This gimmick of forming a committee on ‘One Nation, One Election’ is a subterfuge for dismantling the Federal Structure of India… There will be at least five Amendments required in the Constitution of India, and a massive change in the Representation of the People Act, 1951. The Constitutional Amendments shall be required to truncate the terms of the elected Lok Sabha and the Legislative Assemblies, as also at the level of local bodies, so that they can be synchronised,” Kharge wrote.
“This idea has been extensively examined and rejected by three Committees in the past. It remains to be seen whether the Fourth one has been constituted with a pre-decided outcome in mind,” Kharge added.
“Should this huge exercise unilaterally be undertaken without consulting the political parties at the National level and at the State level ?” the senior Congress leader wondered.
“For 2024, people of India only have ONE NATION, ONE SOLUTION – To get rid of BJP misrule !” Kharge concluded.
The Union Law ministry yesterday notified formation of a committee to look into the ‘One Nation One Election’ proposal put forth by the Modi government. Among panel members named are Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury.
Chowdhury declined to join the committee, saying it’s an ‘eyewash.’
