JPC also option
The Cabinet has already approved the Ramnath Kovind Committee report on ‘One Nation, One Election’. Sources said the government now wants to build a consensus on the bill and may send it to the Joint Parliamentary Committee or JPC for detailed discussion. JPC will talk to representatives of all political parties. Other stakeholders will also be involved in this process. There is discussion that constitutional experts including Assembly Speakers of all the states can be included in this discussion. Sources further said that there is a plan to take public opinion on this bill.
The Constitution will have to be amended
At least six constitutional amendment bills will be introduced to implement ‘One Nation, One Election’ and the government will need a two-thirds majority in Parliament. The special thing is that NDA has a simple majority in both the houses of Parliament, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. But achieving two-thirds majority in the House is a challenging step for the central government.
The government is lagging behind in numerical strength in the House.
To amend the Constitution, the Modi government will also need the support of parties outside the NDA. To amend the Constitution, 50 percent of the 245 seats in the Rajya Sabha and at least two-thirds of the members present in the House will have to vote in favor of the bill. NDA has 112 seats and opposition parties have 85 seats. The government needs at least 164 votes for a two-thirds majority. Talking about Lok Sabha, NDA has 292 seats out of 545 and the two-third majority figure in this house is 364. In such a situation, the central government is working on an action plan to create a consensus on the bill.