'Simultaneous polls will be mother of all reforms'

Dubbing simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies as the "mother of all reforms", a BJP-linked institution today announced a first-of- its-kind national seminar on the issue of 'one nation, one election".
The idea of simultaneous elections is being keenly pushed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
BJP MP and party vice-president Vinay Sahasrabuddhe said that the Rambhau Mhalgi Prabodhini (RMP) would organise a two-day conference in Mumbai on January 20-21, stressing that holding simultaneous Lok Sabbha and state polls can address many challenges facing the country.
Sahasrabuddhe, who is also the RMP vice-chairperson, said the conference would help take the debate to the masses after the Niti Aayog and a parliamentary body spoke favourably about holding elections at once.

Most political parties have supported the exercise in theory and questions raised by them is confined to its implementation, he told reporters, adding that the two-day conference would see discussion on a host of issues related to its execution and benefits.
A statement later said "one nation, one election will prove to be mother of all reforms" for Indian democracy.

The BJP leader said Indian democracy had seen a number of reforms over the years and claimed that simultaneous elections is the major democratic reform that the nation has been waiting for decades.
Building nationwide discourse and building consensus was the need of hour, he said.

Exploring the possibility of holding simultaneous polls remains a difficult yet probable solution to all the challenges which are a direct outcome of multiplicity of elections, he said, adding that an almost permanent election cycle stalls development work and also result in massive additional expenditure.
Holding polls together will also save thousands of crores of rupees, he said.
The BJP leader also emphasised that the conference was not being organised on the behalf of the central government.
While all political parties, including the Congress, have been invited to attend the conference, those who have confirmed their participation include K C Tyagi of the JD(U), a BJP ally, and Baijayant Panda, a BJD MP.

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Niti Aayog vice-chairperson Rajiv Kumar, besides several legal and constitutional experts, will also attend the event, he said.
To questions about how simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly polls can be held if the central government falls and no other party was in a position to offer an alternative, Sahasrabuddhe said one of the suggestions offered was that a positive vote of confidence for an alternative government should take place before the incumbent dispensation is brought down.
He, however, added that he would not like to speculate and it was for all stakeholders to envisage future probabilities and come out with an outcome.

The report of the conference would be presented to the government, he said.
This "massive democratic reform" would free the nation from permanent election mode and enhance the pace of good governance for development, he said.