On Saturday, the Congress party firmly rejected the concept of 'One Nation, One Election,' denouncing it as an attack on both the Constitution and the principle of federalism.
During a briefing on the discussions held at the first meeting of the reconstituted Congress Working Committee (CWC), P Chidambaram, a prominent party leader, expressed his views. He emphasized that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lacks the necessary parliamentary strength to pass the essential constitutional amendments required for implementing simultaneous elections.
Chidambaram conveyed his stance, saying, "The 'One Nation, One Election' proposal represents a direct challenge to the Constitution and undermines the principles of federalism," in response to a query regarding the issue.
He further elaborated that this proposal would necessitate a minimum of five constitutional amendments, and the BJP is well aware of its inability to secure the requisite support for these changes. Despite this, Chidambaram asserted that if the BJP promotes the concept of 'One Nation, One Election,' it is merely attempting to divert attention from more pressing matters while constructing a misleading narrative. Consequently, the Congress party vehemently rejects the idea of simultaneous elections.
These remarks were made in the wake of the government's recent establishment of an eight-member high-level committee. The committee's primary task is to swiftly examine and offer recommendations regarding the possibility of holding concurrent elections for the Lok Sabha, state assemblies, municipalities, and panchayats.
Former President Ram Nath Kovind is set to lead the committee, with Home Minister Amit Shah, Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, former Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, and former Chairman of the Finance Commission N K Singh serving as members. Notably, Chowdhury later declined to participate in the committee.
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