On Friday, December 20, the Rajya Sabha approved the One Nation, One Election bill through a voice vote. The bill proposes conducting parliamentary and state assembly elections simultaneously. The Upper House also passed a motion to nominate 12 members to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) tasked with reviewing the bill, which will include a total of 39 members. This development follows Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal’s proposal in the Lok Sabha to refer the 129th Constitutional Amendment Bill, 2024, and the Union Territories Amendment Bill, 2024, to the JPC.
The committee includes 27 members from the Lok Sabha and 12 members from the Rajya Sabha. During the session, Arjun Ram Meghwal emphasized that the proposed legislation does not undermine state powers but is entirely aligned with constitutional principles. Both bills were sent to the JPC for further deliberation after receiving approval from both Houses.
The 12 Rajya Sabha members nominated to the committee include Ghanashyam Tiwari, Bhubaneswar Kalita, Dr. Kambhampati Laxman, and Kavita Patidar from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP); Sanjay Kumar Jha from the Janata Dal (United); Randeep Singh Surjewala and Mukul Balkrishna Wasnik from the Indian National Congress; Saket Gokhale from the Trinamool Congress; P. Wilson from the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam; Sanjay Singh from the Aam Aadmi Party; Manas Ranjan Mangaraj from the Biju Janata Dal; and Vemireddy Vijayasai Reddy from the YSR Congress Party.
The Lok Sabha members include prominent figures such as P.P. Chaudhary, C.M. Ramesh, Bansuri Swaraj, and Bhupender Yadav from the Bharatiya Janata Party. Congress representatives include Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Manish Tewari, and Sukhdeo Bhagat. Other members include Dharmendra Yadav from the Samajwadi Party, Kalyan Banerjee from the Trinamool Congress, T.M. Selvaganapathi from the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Harish Balayogi from the Telugu Desam Party, and Supriya Sule from the Nationalist Congress Party. Additional members represent smaller parties, such as Shambhavi Singh from the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) and K. Radhakrishnan from the Communist Party of India (Marxist).
The JPC has been directed to present its report by the first day of the last week of the upcoming Budget Session. The 129th Constitutional Amendment Bill, which facilitates simultaneous elections, was introduced in the Lok Sabha on December 17, 2024. It was approved with 263 votes in favor and 198 against after a division of votes.
Opposition parties, including the Indian National Congress, criticized the bill, claiming it undermines the federal structure of the Constitution. They demanded that the bill be scrutinized thoroughly. However, Arjun Ram Meghwal assured the House that the legislation is constitutionally sound and aims to streamline elections without encroaching on state autonomy.
