Bengaluru: Tamil Nadu BJP President K Annamalai on Friday strongly advocated for the implementation of the ‘One Nation, One Election’ model, arguing that it would compel regional parties to adopt a broader national perspective while ensuring that national parties remain engaged with regional concerns.
“One key argument in favour of ‘One Nation, One Election’ is that it would compel regional parties to think nationally and national parties to think regionally. India, with its linguistic and cultural diversity, needs a governance model that balances national unity with regional aspirations,” Annamalai said addressing an event at Jain University here.
He emphasised that simultaneous elections were successfully held from 1952 to 1967, providing 15 years of political stability before turbulence set in from 1967 onwards, culminating in the premature dissolution of the Lok Sabha in 1970 and fresh elections in 1971.
Recalling a pivotal moment in India’s political history, the TN BJP President cited the 1959 dismissal of Kerala’s Communist-led government under EMS Namboodiripad. He attributed the decision to Cold War-era anxieties, suggesting that then-Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, influenced by his daughter Indira Gandhi, feared the growing influence of communism. This, Annamalai asserted, set a precedent for politically motivated dismissals of state governments, a trend that continued through the Emergency period (1975-77), when Tamil Nadu’s non-Congress government was removed.
The BJP leader lamented that India has since been trapped in a perpetual election cycle, with polls being conducted annually across its 28 states and eight Union Territories. This, he argued, disrupts governance as the Model Code of Conduct frequently comes into effect, stalling administrative decision-making and slowing development projects.
Annamalai also highlighted the logistical strain of frequent elections, involving the deployment of thousands of government teachers, security personnel, and election officials. Transporting Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) to remote areas, sometimes on elephants or on foot, further complicates the process, he pointed out.
The TN BJP President noted that discussions on synchronised elections date back to the 1932 Franchise Committee Report and have been consistently advocated by the Election Commission, Law Commission, and various Parliamentary committees. With India’s complex political landscape, the debate over electoral reforms continues, aiming to strike a balance between national cohesion and regional representation.
