एक देश, एक चुनाव पर शिवराज: वर्तमान चुनावों की लागत और संविधान संशोधन की आवश्यकता

Rapid Summary

• Central Minister’s Statement: union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan advocated for constitutional amendment to implement ‘One Nation, one Election.’
• Rationale for Reform: Chouhan cited frequent elections disrupt governmental functioning and escalate costs. He shared examples from his tenure as Madhya Pradesh CM, where election schedules halted administrative work from Sep 2023 to Jun 2024 due to the Code of Conduct.
• Election Expenses: The overall expenditure on elections has sharply risen-from ₹9,000 crores in 1952 to over ₹1 lakh crore in 2024. Combined parliamentary and state elections could cost ₹4-7 lakh crore,including political parties and candidate campaign expenses.
• Ancient context: India initially held simultaneous polls between 1952-1967; instability in state governments led to fragmented election cycles later.
• Pending Legislation Examination: A joint parliamentary committee (JPC) is reviewing two bills-Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill and Union Territory Laws (Amendment) Bill-which propose aligning election schedules legally across states and union territories wiht legislative assemblies like Delhi, Puducherry, Jammu & Kashmir.
• Operation Sindoor Mention: Chouhan praised recent military operations highlighting defense efficiency without revealing specifics.

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Indian Opinion Analysis

The push towards ‘One Nation, One Election’ reflects a longstanding debate about optimizing India’s electoral process-balancing governance efficiency against democratic regularity. Frequent polling undoubtedly imposes logistical challenges on policymakers by diverting administrative resources during extended election periods while also incurring significant financial overheads.

Examples shared from Madhya Pradesh highlight how poll codes impact policy implementation timelines. Tho,achieving synchronized national-state-level elections necessitates substantial restructuring of existing legal frameworks-a task being undertaken by the JPC currently scrutinizing related legislation.

while simultaneous polls promise smoother governance transitions and resource savings estimated at several lakh crores over time, concerns regarding equitable representation or unintended political dominance need careful examination during legislative deliberations. Ultimately this initiative intertwines pragmatic fiscal concerns with broader philosophical implications for India’s democracy.

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