Mamata writes to ‘One Nation, One Election’ panel expressing disapproval

Kolkata: Disagreeing with the concept of holding simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies, Trinamool Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee, on Thursday, wrote to the high-level committee on ‘One Nation, One Election’, stating that the step will undermine the basic structure of India’s constitutional arrangements.

The panel had sought suggestions from the TMC regarding ‘One Nation One Election’ and the last date for response was on January 14. In a letter to Dr Niten Chandra, the secretary of the panel led by former president Ram Nath Kovind, Banerjee mainly pointed out two key issues - the constitutional and structural problems with the term “one nation,” and the timing of Parliamentary and Assembly elections, especially when the current election cycles have a large gap between them. She also questioned the composition of the committee in the backdrop of no chief ministers taken on board.