Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has declined to be a part of the ‘one nation, one election’ committee
New Delhi:
The chief of the Congress get together within the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has declined to be a part of the eight-member committee headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind to see whether or not India might maintain parliamentary and state meeting elections concurrently.
In a letter to House Minister Amit Shah, who can also be a part of the committee, Mr Chowdhury identified that Chief of the Opposition within the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge “has been excluded” from the committee, and as an alternative they took former Congress chief Ghulam Nabi Azad.
“This can be a deliberate insult to the system of parliamentary democracy,” Mr Chowdhury stated within the letter.
The opposite members of the committee are former fifteenth Finance Fee chairman NK Singh, former Lok Sabha Secretary Normal Subhash C Kashyap, senior advocate Harish Salve, and former Chief Vigilance Commissioner Sanjay Kothari.
The committee will look into the feasibility of holding not solely Lok Sabha and meeting elections concurrently, but in addition elections to municipalities and panchayats, in accordance with the gazette notification.
“I’ve no hesitation by any means in declining to serve on the committee whose phrases of reference have been ready in a way to ensure its conclusions. It’s, I’m afraid, a complete eyewash. Furthermore, the sudden try and thrust a constitutionally suspect, pragmatically non-feasible and logistically unimplementable thought on the nation, months earlier than the final elections, raises critical considerations about ulterior motives of the federal government,” the Congress chief stated within the letter.
“Moreover, I discover that the present LOP within the Rajya Sabha has been excluded. This can be a deliberate insult to the system of parliamentary democracy. In these circumstances, I’ve no choice however to say no your invitation,” Mr Chowdhury stated.
The nine-member committee will test whether or not the amendments to the Structure would want ratification by the states, in accordance with the federal government’s gazette notification at this time.
The committee will analyse and advocate attainable options linked to simultaneous elections if there’s a hung home, no-confidence movement, defection, or any such different occasion.
A single electoral roll and id card for voters legitimate for the nationwide, state, civic physique and panchayat elections shall be explored, the federal government stated within the notification.
The BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have spoken on the necessity for ‘One Nation, One Election’ on a number of events, and it was additionally part of the get together’s manifesto for the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
