THE GOAN NETWORK
MARGAO
The civil society has expressed its outrage over their exclusion from the consultation process initiated by the Joint Parliamentary Committee on “simultaneous elections”.
Even as the JPC on the Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill, 2024, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, began its official study visit to Goa, Citizens for Democracy Goa ( CFDG) expressed disappointment over the exclusion of ordinary citizens and public stakeholders from the formal consultation process.
In a detailed memorandum submitted to the Committee, CFDG argued that while the panel is actively interacting with political parties and government institutions during its visit, it has completely bypassed the ultimate custodians of Indian democracy -- the voters.
In an urgent email shot off to the Secretary of the Committee, CFDG leader Elvis Gomes highlighted that India is a “Union of States” rather than a unitary nation.
He said forcing a rigid, synchronized national election calendar subordinates state legislatures to New Delhi and weakens regional democratic mandates.
“In simultaneous elections, massive national narratives (national security, macro-economics) inevitably drown out crucial state-specific struggles. Critical Goan issues -- such as land use, tourism management, coastal regulation (CRZ), mining policy, and the preservation of Goa’s distinct cultural and linguistic identity -- will be pushed to the side lines”, he said.
He added that Goa’s vibrant democracy has historically thrived on independent candidates and smaller regional parties holding the balance of power. “Centralized, high-budget national campaigns will structurally disadvantage local leaders who lack the financial muscle of giant national parties.
The CFDG sharply countered the financial justification for simultaneous elections, stating that public expenditure on free, fair, and frequent elections is an investment in constitutional accountability, not an avoidable administrative cost.
The signatories -- including prominent public voices Elvis Gomes, Amarnath Gaonkar, Avinash Tavares, and Melwin Fernandes.
Gomes informed that despite personal interaction with the officers of the Joint Committee demanding a formal hearing, no response had yet been received expressing hope that an opportunity would still be granted to them to present its case before the Committee.
“We are urging Parliament not to proceed with both bills in their present form. Instead, we recommend focusing on genuine electoral reforms that strengthen transparency, such as capping campaign expenditure, tightening political funding rules, and enforcing time-bound decisions on defection cases”, he added.
