First Meeting of JPC Kicks Off to Discuss ‘One Nation, One Election’

New Delhi, January8, 2025: The inaugural meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on two bills concerning ‘One Nation, One Election’ commenced in New Delhi on Wednesday. The JPC’s primary task is to examine the ‘One Nation, One Election’ Bill and deliberate on the associated provisions of the bills, which are expected to pave the way for holding simultaneous elections across the country. These bills were introduced in the Lok Sabha during the winter session of Parliament. On December 20, the Lower House referred the “One Nation, One Election” Bills to the Joint Committee of Parliament (JPC) for further scrutiny. One of the bills suggests a constitutional amendment.

The bills are officially titled the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024. During this meeting, representatives from the Ministry of Law and Justice (Legislative Department) will provide briefings on the provisions of the proposed legislation.

The 39-member committee comprises 27 Members from the Lok Sabha and 12 Members from the Rajya Sabha. The committee is expected to submit its report by the first day of the last week of the upcoming Parliament session.

The committee includes BJP leaders PP Chaudhary, Anurag Singh Thakur, and Parshottambhai Rupala, Congress leaders Priyanka Gandhi and Manish Tewari, TMC’s Kalyan Bannerjee, and NCP (SP)’s Supriya Sule, among others from the Lok Sabha. Rajya Sabha members include Ghanshyam Tiwari, Bhubaneswar Kalita, and K. Laxman from BJP, along with Randeep Singh Surjewala and Mukul Wasnik from Congress, Sanjay Kumar Jha from JDU, and V. Vijayasai Reddy from YSR Congress, among others.

Earlier, JPC Chairperson PP Chaudhary emphasized that India is on track to achieve its goal of a ‘Viksit Bharat’ by 2047, provided the ongoing development projects are accelerated. He also noted that development can be expedited when the model code of conduct is imposed less frequently. Regarding the committee’s procedure, he added, “The committee will strive to engage with all stakeholders, including legal experts, civil society members, the judiciary, and political parties.”