CHENNAI: As speculation is rife about possible simultaneous elections for all state assemblies and Lok Sabha, Tamil Nadu’s principal opposition party AIADMK has thrown its weight behind the BJP in support of the centre’s ‘one nation, one poll’ plan. Incidentally, the ruling DMK and its allies have been vehemently opposing the idea.
In a statement issued on Friday, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami said he is confident that former President Ramnath Kovind-headed committee will make a ‘strong and swift decision’ in favour of the country’s development.
“AIADMK strongly advocates simultaneous elections for Lok Sabha and state assemblies as it will expedite the speed of the nation’s development and forestall political instability. Simultaneous elections will save time and colossal cost and give elected governments uninterrupted periods of governance to implement welfare policies,” EPS said.
Palaniswami also echoed BJP’s view saying that if the plan is implemented, development would be the focus rather than populist schemes being announced just for the sake of winning elections.
‘One Nation, One Poll’ policy would strengthen India’s federalism: EPS
The AIADMK leader said the ‘One Nation, One Poll’ policy would strengthen India's federalism and may bring better voter turnout and democratic participation. Though the AIADMK had not supported the ‘One Nation, One Poll’ idea in a full-fledged manner before May 2021, the leaders of the party including EPS have been airing views in support of it for the past three years.
In 2018, at a consultative meeting convened by the Law Commission, AIADMK reiterated the stance of former chief minister J Jayalalithaa which was to extend support for the idea in principle but with a condition that the ‘One Nation, One Poll’ idea could be implemented from the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and not from 2019 LS polls.
After the DMK government assumed office in 2021, Palaniswami has been expressing the view that Tamil Nadu could witness Assembly elections in 2024 along with the Lok Sabha polls in accordance with the BJP's ‘One Nation, One Poll’ idea. The DMK allies reacted to the remark saying it betrayed the AIADMK’s wish to dismiss the DMK government led by Chief Minister Stalin.
In January this year, when the Law Commission sought the views of political parties on holding simultaneous elections to state assemblies and Lok Sabha, the AIADMK supported the idea, gave its reasons backing it, and also made some suggestions for overcoming the practical difficulties in implementing the nationwide poll plan.
The DMK and its allies, however, have consistently said the ‘One Nation, One Election’ plan would go against the basic tenets of the Constitution and would be totally impractical to implement in a country like India. They have also argued that simultaneous elections to state assemblies and the Lok Sabha would endanger the federal nature of democracy in India. In a single major election, national issues would overshadow regional issues, DMK had said.