The Tamesis
December 18, 2024
New Delhi – Amid uproar from the opposition, the alliance government on Tuesday tabled two bills related to “One Nation, One Election” after a vote in the Lok Sabha and sent them to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed discussion.
The Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill, 2024 and the Union Territory Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024 were introduced by Union Minister for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal It was proposed in the Lok Sabha after the members voted.
The first bill is for simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and state assemblies and the second bill is for coordination of assembly elections in Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry.
However, the bills have drawn sharp criticism from opposition parties, who say they not only target the basic structure of the constitution but also pose a threat to the country's federal structure and aim to centralize power.
Opposition parties seek a vote on the introduction of the bill.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla announced the results of the vote on the bill. The vote showed 269 members in favor (for) and 196 members against (against).
Earlier, Meghwal formally introduced the Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill, 2024 on “One Nation, One Election” and agreed to submit the bill to the JPC in response to Union Home Minister Amit Shah's statement.
Addressing the Lok Sabha, Shah said, “When the One Nation One Bill was submitted to the Cabinet for approval, Prime Minister Modi had said that it should be sent to the Judiciary Committee for detailed discussion. If the Law Minister is willing to send the Bill to JPC, then the discussion on the Bill can be concluded.
Meghwal also moved a bill seeking to amend the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963, the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, 1991 and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019, as per the day's schedule. The amendments seek to align the assembly elections in Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry with the proposed simultaneous elections.
Opposing the bills, Congress MP Manish Tewari said: “Beyond Article 7 of the Constitution is the Basic Structural Principle which spells out certain features of the Constitution that are beyond the amending power of the House. Its basic features are federalism and the fabric of our democracy. The bill introduced by the Minister of Law and Justice is therefore an absolute attack on the fundamental structure of the Constitution and is beyond the legislative competence of the House.
DMK MP TR Baalu also agreed with the same and said, “I am against the 129th Constitutional Amendment 2024. As my leader MK Stalin said, it is anti-federal. The electors have the right to elect the government for a term of five years year, this right cannot be restricted by holding elections at the same time.
Samajwadi Party MP Dharmendra Yadav echoed the sentiments of other members of the India Group when he said: “I am firmly opposed to the 129th Amendment to the Constitution. I cannot understand why, just two days ago, we were leaving no stone unturned to uphold the glorious tradition of saving the constitution. Both Within days, this constitutional amendment was brought which destroys the basic spirit and structure of the constitution. I agree with Manish Tewari and on behalf of my party and my leader Ak. Akhilesh Yadav has no hesitation in saying that there is no one more learned than the framers of our constitution at that time. I have no hesitation in saying that. Say this.
TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee said, “This proposed bill touches the basic structure of the Constitution itself and if any bill affects the basic structure of the Constitution, it is ultra vires. We must remember that state governments and state legislative assemblies Not affiliated with the Central Government or Parliament. This Congress has the power to make laws under the Seventh Schedule, List One and List Three. Likewise, the State Legislatures have the power to make laws under the Seventh Schedule, List Two and List Three. Therefore, through this. process, the autonomy of state legislative assemblies is being taken away.
The bill paving the way for unified national polls has been on the agenda of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party for quite some time. Once the Lok Sabha, Lok Sabha, Assembly and local body (urban or rural) elections are passed, they will be held in the same year, if not simultaneously. In fact, the panel suggested that the first step would be to hold Lok Sabha and Assembly polls simultaneously, while local body polls would be held within 100 days. If the bill is passed without any amendments, the “one country, one election” initiative could be implemented from 2034.
