AIADMK, BJP back one nation, one poll; DMK opposes idea
CHENNAI: The two Dravidian majors of Tamil Nadu, the DMK and the AIADMK, have expressed contrasting views over holding simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies with the AIADMK supporting the idea and the DMK opposing it. Except BJP, most other political parties in Tamil Nadu, too, have opposed the move.
The Law Commission had asked all political parties to submit their views on holding simultaneous polls by January 15.A senior leader of the AIADMK shared the party’s position on ‘one nation, one poll’ with TNIE. The leader, however, declined to divulge the details of the communication sent to the Law Commission saying that it would be made public by the party leadership at an appropriate time.
While giving its reasons for supporting the idea, the AIADMK has also made some suggestions for overcoming practical difficulties in implementing it, the leader said. When asked about the DMK’s stand on the issue, party’s organising secretary RS Bharathi told TNIE that the DMK has been opposing the idea and had already raised its voice in Parliament against the plan since it is against democratic principles.
“We will raise the issue again in Parliament in the budget session,” he said. Congress floor leader in Tamil Nadu Assembly K Selvaperunthagai said the idea is against the basic tenets of the constitution. For example, the people of Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh elected their new governments last month, just 18 months before the LS polls. In such a situation, dissolution of state assemblies for conducting elections along with the Lok Sabha polls is impossible, he said.
CPI state secretary R Mutharasan said, “The idea is good. But it is impossible to implement it in a country like India. After 1968, simultaneous elections became impossible in India as many state assemblies were dissolved due to political disturbances. Even central governments lacked stability after 1977. Even if a panchayat ward member post becomes vacant, a byelection should be held to reelect a representative. The BJP is promoting the RSS agenda. RSS wants to bring in a presidential form of government in India. “
CPM state secretary K Balakrishnan echoed his views and said political developments decide the duration of the state assemblies and the Lok Sabha. “Horse-trading has become the order of the day. As such, ‘One Nation One Poll’ is against democratic norms. BJP toes RSS ideology on the issue. For them, the state government should be there for administrative purposes only. But in India, each state government has linguistic and racial identities. So, such an idea cannot be possible in our country,” he added.
BJP vice-president Narayanan Thirupathy said the idea is needed for India on various counts. It is not a new idea. It has been there for general elections since 1952. After the Supreme Court verdict in the SR Bommai case, dissolution of state assemblies has become rare. To address the issue of instability of governments, Law Commission and parliamentary committee on simultaneous elections have suggested remedies. Suppose a government falls within two years, the next elected government should be there only for three years. A constitutional amendment is needed for this. If this idea comes into force in 2029, the term of the Tamil Nadu Assembly will only be for three years, he said.
VCK general secretary and MP D Ravikumar said, “Simultaneous elections will endanger the federal nature of our democracy. In major single election, national issues would overshadow regional issues. Smaller parties fighting for the rights of marginalised people and state parties promoting state interests will be sidelined. This will hinder the growth of democracy at the grassroots level, he said.
According to the SC verdict in Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala, and SR Bommai v. Union of India, federalism is part of the basic structure of the constitution. “The concept of simultaneous elections can potentially weaken federalism in India. ‘One Nation, One Election’ will make sense if India were a unitary state. But we are a union of states which is philosophically and politically a different conception of the Indian nation-state,” he said.
BJP toes RSS ideology: CPM
‘One Nation One Poll’ is against democratic norms. BJP toes RSS ideology on the issue. For them, the state government should be there for administrative purposes only. But in India, each state government has linguistic and racial identities. So, such an idea cannot be possible in our country, says CPM state secretary K Balakrishnan