Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal on Tuesday introduced the 'One Nation, One Election' (ONOE) bill in the Lok Sabha. The bill, which was approved by the Union Cabinet on December 12, has faced strong opposition. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has described it as a significant step for India's democracy.
A day after the introduction of the One Nation One Election (ONOE) bill in the Lok Sabha, it has been reported that Congress is likely to choose MPs Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Manish Tewari, Sukhdeo Bhagat, and Randeep Surjewala for the joint committee of Parliament that will scrutinise the bills for simultaneous polls.
As per PTI, the other MPs who are likely to be part of the panel include JD(U)'s Sanjay Jha, Samajwadi Party's Dharmendra Yadav, TDP's Harish Balayogi, DMK's P Wilson and Selva Gagapathy, Shiv Sena's Shrikant Shinde, and Trinamool Congress's Kalyan Banerjee and Saket Gokhale.
Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal on Tuesday introduced the 'One Nation, One Election' (ONOE) bill in the Lok Sabha. The bill, which was approved by the Union Cabinet on December 12, has faced strong opposition. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has described it as a significant step for India's democracy.
On Tuesday, the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024, and the Union Territories Law (Amendment) Bill, 2024, to enable simultaneous polls were tabled amid protests from the opposition. The bills were admitted in the lower House with 269 voting in favour and 198 against it.
ONOE in simple terms means that Lok Sabha, state Assembly, and local body (urban or rural) elections will be held in the same year, if not at the same time. This was the norm from independence until 1967, with four electoral cycles held during that period, starting with the first general election in 1951/52. However, this practice occurred only three more times—during the 1957, 1962, and 1967 elections.
The parties are suggesting names for the 31-member panel for the joint committee of Parliament which needs to be formed in the next three days as the winter session of Parliament will end Friday. The ruling BJP is expected to chair the committee.
The panel, which primarily will be working within a time frame of 90 days once formed, is bestowed with the responsibility to examine the proposed amendments and consult stakeholders.
Opposition leaders on Tuesday sharply criticised the introduction of the Constitution 129th Amendment Bill 2024 and the Union Territories Laws Amendment Bill 2024. They called it a direct assault on the Constitution라이브 바카라 basic structure.
Congress MP Manish Tewari argued that the bills violate core constitutional principles. "Beyond the seventh schedule of the Constitution is the basic structure doctrine... one of the essential features is federalism and the structure of our democracy. Therefore, the bills... absolutely assault the basic structure of the Constitution and are beyond the legislative competence of this House," he stated.
While Samajwadi Party MP Dharmendra Yadav echoed concerns over the bills' threat to federalism, DMK leader T.R. Baalu raised alarms about the financial burden of conducting a massive electoral exercise. TMC라이브 바카라 Kalyan Banerjee also warned that the amendments contradicted the current Constitution.