No simultaneous polls in 2024: Sources

According to reports from India Today, a source in the law commission has told that there will not be simultaneous elections during the 2024 General Elections believing that the implementation of the ‘One Nation One Election’ will not be feasible before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The Law Commission’s report on ‘One Nation One Election’ is expected to be published before the 2024 polls.

Justice Rituraj Awasthi, the Chairman of the Law Commission Chairman told India Today on Wednesday that the report would take some time as “there is still some work going on simultaneous elections”. According to the sources, the report will also suggest amendments to the constitution to bring in simultaneous elections in India and that it will focus on Lok Sabha elections and State Assembly elections.

The subsequent report will be submitted to the Union Law Ministry before the 2024 polls.

In December 2022, the 22nd Law Commission formulated a set of six questions seeking the opinion of various stakeholders including national political parties, the Election Commission of India, bureaucrats, academicians and experts on the proposal to hold simultaneous elections in India.

In 2018, the 21^st Law Commission sent its first draft report to the Union Law Ministry where the Law Commission said that holding simultaneous elections would be beneficial for the country and that it would save public money, reduce the burden on the administration and security forces and ensure better implementation of the government policies. The Commission also added that holding simultaneous elections was not possible under the current framework of the constitution and it also recommended amending certain relevant provisions in the Representation of the People Act, 1951 so that all by-elections falling in one year will be conducted simultaneously.

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