Joint Lok Sabha, Assembly polls: Major pros and cons

A parliamentary panel has studied the issue in consultation with various stakeholders, including the Election Commission, officials said on Friday.

The committee has made certain recommendations in this regard, the officials said. The matter has now been referred to the Law Commission for further examination to work out a "practicable roadmap and framework" for simultaneous elections.

Holding elections to the Lok Sabha and in states at the same time will result in huge savings for the public exchequer and avoid replication of administrative efforts in holding repeated elections. It would bring considerable savings to political parties and candidates in their election campaign.

Separate elections

Holding separate elections result in prolonged enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct with its concomitant adverse impact on developmental and welfare programmes, the officials said.

But any decision to hold simultaneous elections will require amendments in at least five articles of the Constitution – article 83 (duration of Houses of Parliament), article 85 (dissolution of Lok Sabha by President), article 172 (duration of state legislatures), article 174 (dissolution of state legislatures) and article 356 (imposition of President's Rule in states).

A consensus of all political parties is also required keeping in mind the federal structure of India's system of governance, PTI reported.

Besides, it is imperative that consensus of all state governments is obtained as well.

More EVMs

Joint elections would also need an additional number of electronic voting machines (EVMs) and VVPATs (paper trail machines), all of which will cost "thousands of crores of rupees".

With the life span of a machine being only 15 years, this would imply that a machine would be used for about three or four times. They need to be replaced every 15 years.

Other countries

Additional polling personnel and security forces would also be needed to hold the massive democratic exercise.

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice in its 79th report had highlighted that in South Africa, elections to national as well as provincial legislatures are held simultaneously for five years.

In Sweden, elections to national legislature and provincial legislature/county council and local bodies/municipal assemblies are held on a fixed date – the second Sunday in September for four years.

In the UK, the term of Parliament is governed by the Fixed-term Parliament Act, 2011.

(With agency inputs)