RS adopts motion to nominate 12 MPs to panel on simultaneous polls bills

The Rajya Sabha on Friday adopted through voice vote a motion to nominate 12 of its members to the joint committee of Parliament that will scrutinise the two bills proposing simultaneous elections.

Soon after the House met following an initial adjournment in the morning, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar asked Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal to move a motion to nominate members of the Rajya Sabha to the panel.

Moving the motion, Meghwal said the Upper House of Parliament resolves to nominate 12 members to serve on the joint committee.

The members nominated from the Rajya Sabha are Ghanshyam Tiwari, Bhubaneshwar Kalita, Dr K Laxman and Kavita Patidar of the BJP, Sanjay Kumar Jha of the JD(U), Randeep Singh Surjewala and Mukul Wasnik of the Congress, Saket Gokhale of the TMC, P Wilson of the DMK, Sanjay Singh of AAP, Manas Ranjan Mangaraj of the BJD and V Vijaisai Reddy of the YSRCP.

Minutes before the Lok Sabha was adjourned sine die, the House on Friday adopted a resolution recommending the two bills on holding simultaneous polls to a joint committee of Parliament.

While 27 members on the panel will be from the Lok Sabha, 12 will be from the Rajya Sabha.

Former Union ministers Anurag Thakur and P P Chaudhary from the BJP, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra of the Congress are among the Lok Sabha members, who will be part of the joint committee.

The two 'one nation one election' (ONOE) bills, including one requiring an amendment to the Constitution, lay down the mechanism to hold simultaneous elections and were introduced in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday after a fiery debate.