Owaisi voices opposition to 'One Nation, One Election', writes to high-level committee

Hyderabad: Expressing opposition to the idea of 'One Nation, One Election', AIMIM President Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday claimed that the proposal will be a 'disaster' for Indian democracy and federalism and that it is a 'solution searching for a problem'.

Owaisi, who wrote a letter to Niten Chandra, Secretary of a High-level Committee (HLC) 'One Nation, One Election' that has called for suggestions for implementation of the idea, urged the "HLC to duly record the finding that simultaneous elections are neither constitutionally permissible nor necessary, nor viable".

In a post on social media platform X, the Hyderabad MP said, "Wrote to the High Level Committee on One, One Election. #OneNationOneElection will be a disaster for Indian democracy & federalism. It is a solution searching for a problem."

"I write to you to oppose the proposal of 'One Nation, One Election' in my capacity as Member of Parliament and President of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen. I have appended my substantive objections to the proposal based on constitutional law. The same objections were also conveyed to the Law Commission of India on June 27, 2018 when it had sought suggestions on the issue," Owaisi, said in the letter.

Reiterating his objections, Owaisi said every consultation on this issue has 'sidestepped' the first requirement of lawmaking in democracies of justifying why a policy needs to be made.

According to him, no rationale has been provided by the government.

"Neither have the Parliamentary Standing Committee, NITI Aayog or the Law Commission demonstrated why such a step needs to be taken," Owaisi said in the letter, adding that the discussion instead has been focused on how it can be implemented.

"Unfortunately, the same flaw exists in the HLC's terms of reference," the AIMIM chief said.

He said the focus is on the "creation of an appropriate legal and administrative framework for holding simultaneous elections on a permanent basis".

More importantly, it has not been explored if such fundamental changes to India's democratic structure are constitutionally permissible in the first place, he noted and asserted that "this is a solution in search of a problem".

Owaisi further said that elections are not a mere formality and voters are not rubber stamps.

He said elections cannot be subject to such 'weak' considerations as administrative convenience or economic viability.

"If constitutional requirements were subject to financial or administrative considerations, then it would lead to absurd consequences: should one do away with permanent civil services or police because of costs? Should one stop recruiting judges because of pendency?," he asked in the letter.

"I urge the HLC to duly record the finding that simultaneous elections are neither constitutionally permissible nor necessary, nor viable," Owaisi added.

The high-level committee headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind had written to political parties seeking their opinion on the matter.