The Election Commission has endorsed the idea of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi for holding simultaneous elections to the lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabhas. The poll panel said it supports the idea provided it was given additional human resources.
Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi said here on Tuesday that the commission has supported the idea of holding simultaneous elections to the Parliament and State Assemblies. He however added that “first there should be political unanimity and adoption of the required amendment in the law by the Parliament’’.
“The Election Commission of India had already made its representation before the law commission and the parliamentary panel over the issue for which at present there is a national debate,” he said. Talking to reporters here, Zaidi said the country held simultaneous elections of the Parliament and State Assemblies from 1952 to 1967 but there after the cycle was broken. “Holding the elections simultaneously will certainly save money, time and energy with effective governance,” he added.
“We can ensure both the elections simultaneously with getting certain facilities like more human resources including security forces, Electronic Voting Machines and change in schedule of the elections and its phases,” Zaidi said.
“There is a long way to go as it requires to two goals to achieve first to reach a political consensus and amendment in the Constitution is required to adopt for simultaneous elections of the Parliament and the State Assemblies’’, he said. A national debate is on in the country over the holding of simultaneous elections of the Parliament and the State Assemblies after Prime Minister Narendra Modi mooted the idea at a political function recently.
The concept of simultaneous polls continued in the country till the third general elections. The first general elections to the lok Sabha and all State legislative Assemblies were held together in 1951-52. This practice continued in the three subsequent general elections held in 1957, 1962 and 1967. With the premature dissolution of some State Assemblies in 1968 and 1969, this cycle was disrupted.
In 1970, the lok Sabha itself was dissolved early and fresh elections were held in 1971. As a result, for the last 48 years, there have been separate polls for electing the Central and State Governments. In UP 1989 was the last time when the simultaneous elections for the lok Sabha and State Assembly were held in the State.
On the top of Smartphone announced by the ruling Samajwadi party to be delivered after the elections CEC said “Commission is not authorised to take cognisance of the announcement of the smart phones, We can take up the issue in a legal way only when they include it in the poll manifesto,” As per the announcement made by the Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, the registeration for the free smart phones is to commence from November and will be delivered to the eligible people after the elections if the Samajwadi party is voted back to power.