Rahul Gandhi slams ‘One Nation, One Election’, calls it ‘attack on Union and all states’

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday alleged that the idea of “One Nation, One Election” is an attack on the Indian Union and all its states.

Rahul Gandhi posted on X (formerly Twitter), “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.”

The Congress MPs tweet comes after the government set up a high-level committee headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind on the possibility of holding simultaneous elections.

Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Saturday declined the invitation to be part of the panel which was formed by the central government to examine the possibility of implementing the idea of ‘One Nation, One Election’.

He has also lamented the exclusion of Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge from the committee. The government has included in the committee Ghulam Nabi Azad, the former leader of the opposition, instead of Kharge.

The panel also includes Union Home Minister Amit Shah, President of the Democratic Progressive Azad Party Ghulam Nabi Azad, former Chairman of the 15th Finance Commission, NK Singh, former Secretary General of Lok Sabha, Subhash Kashyap, senior advocate, Harish Salve, and former Chief Vigilance Commissioner Sanjay Kothari.

The government on Saturday notified the eight-member committee to examine and make recommendations at the earliest on the issue of holding simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha, state assemblies, municipalities and panchayats.

The committee will examine and recommend specific amendments to the Constitution, the Representation of the People Act and any other laws and rules which would require amendments for the purpose of holding simultaneous elections.

It will also examine and recommend, if the amendments to the Constitution would require ratification by the states.

The committee will also analyse and recommend possible solutions to scenarios such as hung House, adoption of no-confidence motion, or defection or any such other event in case of simultaneous elections.