THE GOAN NETWORK
PANAJI
The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) examining the One Nation One Election proposal will recommend tightening anti-defection provisions in its report, chairperson P P Choudhari said on Saturday at the end of the panel’s two day visit to Goa.
He noted that suggestions in this regard had come from civil society groups and Opposition parties.
Earlier on Friday the MGP, a coalition partner of the BJP had argued before the JPC that stricter laws against defections must precede any move to synchronise elections.
Power Minister Ramkrishna (Sudin) Dhavalikar, representing the MGP, urged the committee to ban defections outright.
The AAP echoed similar concerns, opposing simultaneous polls while stressing the need to strengthen anti-defection safeguards.
Choudhari, meanwhile, insisted that the proposed ONOE framework is fully consistent with the Constitution.
“We sought the opinion of six former Chief Justices of India. All of them independently told the committee that simultaneous elections do not violate the federal structure, democracy, or the basic structure of the Constitution,” he said.
The BJP leader added that economists were consulted on financial implications.
Citing the high level committee headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind, he claimed synchronised polls could add nearly Rs 7 lakh crore to the economy by reducing disruptions.
Frequent elections, he argued, affect education, tourism, industry, and banking.
“Teachers are repeatedly deployed for election duties, tourism suffers under the Model Code of Conduct, and industries face stress during election periods,” he said.
Tracing history, Choudhari recalled that Lok Sabha and Assembly polls were held together between 1952 and 1967, before premature dissolutions and the Emergency disrupted the cycle.
He pointed out that the Election Commission, Law Commission, and several expert panels have long recommended simultaneous elections.
The JPC has travelled across States, including Maharashtra, Punjab, Karnataka, Gujarat, and Goa, gathering views from chief ministers, Speakers, legislators, industry and civil society.
“The objective is to evolve a law that serves the national interest for decades to come,” Choudhari said, stressing that ONOE would reduce expenditure, improve governance, and end India’s “continuous election mode.”
