Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi expressed the state’s backing for the ‘One Nation, One Election’ idea during a meeting with the Joint Parliamentary Committee. Sanghavi highlighted Gujarat’s past practice of holding combined local body elections as a step towards this approach.
Sanghavi emphasized that Gujarat has successfully organized elections for various local self-government bodies simultaneously, setting a positive example for other states. The Joint Parliamentary Committee, led by BJP MP P. P. Chaudhary, is currently assessing the feasibility of synchronized national and state elections.
The state government, led by Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, conveyed to the committee that unified elections would benefit the nation by streamlining the electoral process and reducing administrative disruptions. Sanghavi pointed out the strain that frequent elections put on public resources, government personnel, and voters.
Advocating for synchronized elections, Sanghavi noted that the current system leads to voter inconvenience, administrative challenges, and disruptions in routine governance activities. He also suggested that simultaneous polls could help mitigate local-level tensions arising from frequent electoral cycles.
The Joint Parliamentary Committee’s visit to Gujarat involved discussions with state officials, political parties, and leaders from the BJP, Congress, and Aam Aadmi Party. P. P. Chaudhary commended Gujarat’s presentation as a potential model for other states considering similar electoral reforms.
