Our Correspondent / New Delhi
Chief Election Commissioner OP Rawat today rules out Simultaneous elections saying they are not possible without a legal framework as any extension or curtailment of the term of assemblies will require a constitutional amendment.
Rawat’s remarks came a day after the BJP made a strong pitch for simultaneous polls, with party chief Amit Shah arguing that one election would check expenditure and ensure that the nation is not in “election mode” throughout the year.
Pointing at the need for a legal framework, Mr Rawat ruled out holding simultaneous elections any time soon.
“If the term of some state assemblies needs to be curtailed or extended, then a constitutional amendment will be required… Logistics arrangements with regard to 100 per cent availability of VVPATs (voter-verifiable paper trail machines) will be a constraint,” the Chief Election Commissioner told media persons.
“On the issue of ‘one nation one poll’, the Election Commission had given inputs and suggestions in 2015 itself… Additional police force, polling personnel would also be needed,” Mr Rawat said.
BJP President Amit Shah wrote to the Law Commission on Monday, supporting holding Lok Sabha and assembly elections simultaneously. In his eight-page letter, the BJP chief said the opposition to simultaneous elections seems to be politically motivated.
Opposition parties have raised concern over the proposal, saying simultaneous elections would dilute India’s federal structure.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been a vocal supporter of simultaneous polls.
The EC is in the process of procuring new electronic voting machines (EVMs) and VVPATs ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
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