When the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party lost its governments in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh barely four months before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi quietly stopped propagating his “one nation, one election” idea. Now that he is back in power with 21 seats more than last time, the idea has returned as have his renewed attempts to push it through.
The prime minister wants all state elections to be held along with the Lok Sabha elections. If his plan were to be implemented, there would be no assembly election across the country for the next five years.
In 2024, people will choose their MLAs along with their MPs, their chief ministers along with their prime minister. One nation, one election. If India is one, why should it have many elections?
One election is necessary in a country that is already united by one language, one religion, one enemy nation, one sport, one culture, one weather, one caste, one dress, one cuisine, one party and one leader. Only the Tukde Tukde Gang talks about diversity. If you want diversity, go to Pakistan.
Also read: Poll panel chief says Modi’s simultaneous polls desirable goal, but possible only in 2024
Prime Minister Modi says too much money is wasted in holding state and Lok Sabha elections separately. He is right. We could save around Rs 5,500 crore every five years by organising state and Lok Sabha elections together. This money could be better utilised in building statues, such as the one in Gujarat that cost around Rs 3,000 crore. The savings could also help increase One Leader’s annual publicity budget, currently a modest Rs 1,200 crore.
It will of course cost more to put two instead of one electronic voting machines, but let’s not allow logic and facts to come in the way of national unity. Better still, we should save the money on the extra EVM, making voters choose the CM and PM with just one press of a button. The MLAs and the MPs don’t matter anyway. Ours is already a Presidential form of government like the United States. We should do one better than the US, because the Vedas said we are the best, and completely do away with electing state governments altogether. Let our presidential prime minister appoint chief ministers. In most states he already does. What makes you think the people of Haryana chose Manohar Lal Khattar, or the people of Uttar Pradesh chose Yogi Adityanath?
It is time to improve upon the concept of “co-operative federalism” and move on to “co-opted federalism”.
Also read: Why BJP will rule India uninterrupted for the next 30 years, till 2049
This federalism business is all hogwash. It creates a lot of problems. India has 29 states, and two of the seven Union Territories have their own assembly election. That’s 31 assembly elections in five years – an average of one election every two months. Is it fair to expect Narendra Modi and Amit Shah to keep fighting so many elections? How will they govern without populism if they are forced to pander to the masses all the time?
The Prime Minister rightly says the administration comes to a standstill when it’s election time. He is right: when and how will the Union government function if its entire focus is on winning state elections from Puducherry to Punjab?
Besides, critics picking holes in Modi’s idea of simultaneous polls don’t realise the amount of money and hard work it takes for the BJP to win these state elections. This is not sustainable. That’s why these slip-ups happen. Modi-Shah lost Delhi and Bihar in 2015. They lost the Hindi heartland states like Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan in 2018. They couldn’t form the government in Karnataka, and those greedy Janata Dal (Secular) MLAs are white elephants who don’t like to trade like horses. And remember how Gujarat’s voters played hard to get in 2017?
Also read: Modi says debate on simultaneous polls is healthy sign of democracy & tribute to Vajpayee
When state and Lok Sabha elections are held together, these annoying local factors, these caste dynamics and farmers issues and so on, they will all go away. For ‘One Nation, One Election’, there will be ‘One Nation, One Issue’ and that one issue is Narendra Modi. Forget your reservation issues and farm prices and bank credit and unemployment rate. The only issue in India is whether you like Narendra Modi or not. You don’t have a choice because the alternative is Rahul Gandhi.
In fact, now that Modi is India and India is Modi, we should ask if we need state governments at all. By giving Narendra Modi majority after majority, the people of India have signed away federalism, given up on diversity and local issues, and no longer care about caste and community representation. All because they know how well One Leader is running the entire country single-handedly. Which is why we don’t need state governments at all. ‘One Nation, One Election’ should be followed by ‘One Nation, One State’.
Views are personal.
Prof PK Sharma, Freelance Journalist,Barnala(Punjab)
Hats off to the author Mr.Shivam Vij for exposing and x-raying the demagogic, digressive, dramatic and damnable mind of NaMo !
Very amazing , that a megalomaniac now according importance to the opposition now after enjoying first term of blind power for
five years sounds awkward and appears dramatic too .Then talk of one nation, one election floated now is an attempt to divert the attention of the masses from burning, sensitive and grave problems the nation is face to face with.
NaMo to my mind pretends to be jack of all trades but certainly master of one -that is “theatrics of politics”.
The demagoguery and diverting minds of public are the bizarre weapons in armoury of dual politics of NaMo-Amit Shah !
This new narrative of one nation, one election will enable him to digress public minds from unemployment, imparting of affordable
quality education, cheap and best health care system, eradication of poverty and improving the lot of distressed farmers.
He is now making all out efforts to cover up his first term failures and blunders like demonetisation, flawed GST, bungling in the
Rafale Fighter Aircraft Deal, mishandling of insurgency problem in Jammu and Kashmir, rural distress and mob-lynching menace etc. !
These are just a couple of examples of new narratives now being switched into action but many more will be in the offing to brush the
truth under the carpet all the time to be in the hot seat for pretty long .
Will he groom more ” Chaiwalas ” and “Kaamdaars” to be in the hot seat like him or just keep them confined to bank account opening
exercise ? Times to follow can offer an answer to this question !
Above all, one thing is very clear he will have to toil a lot to divert people’s minds from the fact of hijacking 2019 Lok Sabha Polls by way
of bungling of EVMs and courtesy- Election Commission of India !
Within about a fortnight’s time, NaMo took oath twice in the name of God and Constitution of India. If he bears true faith and allegiance
in these two in the letter and spirit then he owes an explanation to the nation on abovementioned issues and subjects ! Instead of making
these issues to slip into the oblivion, he should tell the nation did he do justice to his duties and responsibilities in a fair, objective, impartial
and conscientious fashion !
If he fails to offer answers to these searching questions honestly then NDA-II is going to be a repetition of NDA-I may be worse than that !
Prof PK Sharma, Freelance Journalist
Pom Anm Nest,Barnala (Punjab)
This article has absolutely no analysis no argument made or defended. The headline says something but there is no information, data, or atleast an opinion to back it up. It’s just pure rant.
Hypocrites .. A person is talking about an unnecessary expenditure, who has screwed up indian’s hard earned tax money of 6,220/- Crores on his personal amusements foreign trips. And foolish idiots Indians are tuning with him ..
you belong to mars smart alec mahest copper T 🙂 THROWING ANY NUMBER ON HEARSAY IS NEW FASHION NOWADAYS
We don’t bluff like you and your master https://www.msn.com/en-sg/news/newsindia/pm-narendra-modi-spent-rs-65-billion-on-84-foreign-trips-and-advertisements/ar-BBQWNmu?li=AAggbRN
its not credible who master you are smoking cracks silly poisonous weed. who is your master? you see elected Representative as master than surely you should be saint Bernard . criticize govt but with credible info
Fundamentals will ruin if leaders like this. good news
After reading the article I felt the author may have gone overboard in bashing Modi but the subtle message is Democracy and federalism cannot be undermined in the name of cost savings. One nation One election is cruel idea against federalism of the country which was pushed to masses some two years back by Modi. I read comments of going over board in rants against the author but I wanted to know if guys accept One Nation One election proposal?
I regularly read ThePrint for it’s objective criticism of the government but this is stupid. Most of the points are either misrepresented or intentionally omitted. I really don’t care if the article is for or against the government or if it’s inclining towards a political philosophy that I don’t agree with. I want to read about things I don’t agree with to expand my scope but this is just low quality writing. I don’t dislike biased journalism but I don’t have an appetite for incompetently written articles just to prove a point. If this is not propaganda then what is ?
It’s called ‘satire’ for a reason.
vishnu numb nuts you are its propaganda too with false cover of satire
Demonetisation, supporting Rakesh asthana, supporting Adani and ambani blindly, well lastly taking away contract of hal to give rafaele to a man like Anil Ambani, treating ones wife like shit, shows me the reason that absolute power corrupts
Ale lelelelelelelelelelele Rona aa raha hai BJP jeeti to. Ro le , Maan halka ho jayega. ????
Mocking the Vedas unnecessarily, are you ?
Was it deemed mandatory by your ISI handler in Rawalpindi ?
Or is Narendra Modi’s emphatic victory still giving you a severe case of Burnolitis?
The Print is degenerating from stinking garbage straight to the septic tank, thanks to this cocaine-binging junkie passing for a columnist.
O nice way of presenting political satire.
The biggest flaw I see with simultaneous central and state polls is that if either governments lose majority in their respective legislature then how can you keep the polls aligned unless you truncate the term of the government that will be newly elected. This can lead to other complicated issues too if parties are forced to form a new govt to avoid an election. On the other hand, having more polls is a good democratic thing. Polls should be held for every public office, including collectors, police commissioners, judges etc. That way the elected public officials will be more accountable to the people. People also will have better access to decentralized power. More elections and more decentralization of power will bring more power to the people. As a step further there should be provision to recall an elected representative and government if they are not performing well. Distribution of party tickets should also be democratized. Party leaders distributing tickets to candidates should be made illegal. Even party tickets should be earned through a primary or caucus system of election.
Law and order nationalists are in charge now…
Now someone will comment “BJP’s IT cell workers have flooded “https://theprint.in/opinion/india-should-abolish-state-governments-since-modi-can-run-the-country-all-by-himself/250953/” with criticizing the writer.
What about abolishing the media since Modi can communicate directly with public ?
Once Sh.Shekhar Gupta in an article aptly applied the term ‘useful idiots’ for the so celled left liberals found indulged in helping dreaded Maoist/Naxal organizations in the hope of targeting and discrediting Modi Govt. and BJP. But , in fact, such idiotic endeavors normally ended up in helping the Modi & BJP. By going through this article of Shivam Vij I can safely conclude that one so called intellectual is in making of yet another ‘useful idiot’. This article has been authored in an acute stage of utter frustration. By writing such rubbish he appears to become a fit idiot to join the coveted club of great scholars like Dr.U.R.Ananthamurty, Shobha Dey, Javed Akhtar, Kanhaiya Kumar, Nasiruddin Shah and many others who think indian voters are foolish and possess lower than normal IQ. Instead of investing their so called raw intellects in understanding the matrix of ever changing contemporary India by ìts roots these useful idiots are busy in discrediting such people of India who preferred to believed in the ideology which brought real and visible changes in their lives and have shown little or no interest in the obsolete and redundant ideology constantly being propagated for years by the so celled ‘intellectuals’. We must not forget that these people have become such a huge and unbearable liability that no political party could afford to follow them and remain relevant in today’s political field simultaneously not even the left parties . If they are anything to reckon with the left front could have taken over the entire country by popular mandate from that very foolish voters. But what is the reality today the entire left parties are struggling to find/retain a place in order to survive.
Shivam Vij sounds unhinged. Why is The Print wasting editorial columns for low-effort emotional rants like this? Anyone can write this. Why is one of the editors of this site behaving this way?
Someone’s butthurt brutally ?
What a rant!! Hahahaaaaaa
EVM tampering
Hahahaha I feel so happy by looking at this frustrated author …. Ppl like him help us earn money in share market because of increased burnol sales 😛 😀
The Quint,Print etc are funny reads…just enjoy them…where Modi bashers thrive..just like mosquitoes in stagnant water.
That stagnant smelly water is bjp which is destroying the country
you are dengue isn’t it?
Your choices: (1) Grin and bear it; (2) keep coming up with conspiracy theories; OR (3) apply for Congress Presidentship and be a change agent for the party and our great country. Hurry, the vacancy is not filled up yet.
Let me say, I m not a Modi supporter n I always try to hard justify his every decision. I supposed this article must be having some real logic n points against the issue. But down through the lines it comes to be all rubbish, crude n stupid outbursts of someone’s extreme disagreement without any logic or argument. I only wonder how could it have a publication
Shivam Vij has lost it.
Neither insightful nor funny. In short, a complete failure.
Mr.Shivam, try to respect the verdict of the voters of India & stop Modi bashing.
Nice
ONE SIDED AND BIASED TOTALLY……….DON’T TAKE ME WRONG
I’M NOT ‘BHAKT’
BUT THIS KIND OF BIASED ARTICLES ACTUALLY HELPS HIM……….AND GIVES LEGITIMACY TO ‘TUKDE TUKDE’ & ‘URBAN NAXAL’ CONSPIRACY THEORIES
Writer also inspired from tukde tukde gang dear.
Leave it to the future to tell who are real tukde tukde gang.
Lolz, the frustration of Print, Wire and Quint gang has started to grow and will peak out well before next elections ?. Love the use of selective representation for manipulations of facts.
Just that, the assumption that readers are gullible fools is bit misplaced here. Else despite the tireless effort by this anti India gang NDA has got even stronger Mandate.
Get well soon ?
I think that the writer has put it very well. Sarcasm in prose is like a political cartoon. Such expression needs to be respected. The reason that Modi wants simultaneous polls is clearly expressed by the writer, to make it a one man show. Modi should remember that absolute power corrupts absolutely.
so you concluded result in future if one nation one time state and center election take place modi will win??? mr. astrologer chhotebhai … your kind of flocks are boulder in having policy change even good policy are set to politically motivated one by people like you. still no reason to jump the gun as modi has only suggested this to be discussed he is not imposing and he can’t either impose if all parties are not say yes to it.
kind of flocks are boulder? if all parties are not say yes? your psudo is well chosen – you should be declared persona non grata if you can’t be bothered to write half-way correct English. the Hindi IT-cell does not pay as much? pay better for English?
yes mitra pitra bongi purist you aren’t a professor this is not grammatical school .. you should focus on your own english it will serve you better. bongi tmc cell of cesspool
that hurt, did it? burnol, mr. non-gramatical bhakt? burnol does not care for caste or religion – it sooths all equally 😉
oh1 NUT CASE FIRST LEARN TO TYPE PROPER YOU TYPE PSUDO WHEN ITS PSEUDO… BURNOL IS USED FOR SKIN BURN NOT FOR ARES LIKE U .. KEEP ON RANTING NOW . GOOD LUCK WITH ENGLISH LEARNING LEARN QUICKLY OR SPEAK YOUR BENGALI BONGI :p
Nice rant. I am trying to learn from the Bhakts – I heard that the pay is not bad at bhajpa IT-cell. Question is how to apply?
You intrigue me – do you deliberately mangle your english like joyce to stand out? they pay you better for this? it is difficult to believe that someone can write so badly and still take the trouble to write any way.
bong bongaa stfu you are now ignored imbecile as you are ..you can only retort to side track fruitful conversation so now you can keep on blabbering . best of luck in your endevour of blabbering
“The Print ” will have to renamed as ” Frustrated Print ” if Modi haters are given free space to vomit and to write what ever they want to. The Election results of 2019 seems to have made the writer very upset. The writer must know and keep in mind nature abhors vacuum. The rise of BJP to replace Congress is not one time fluke event. It is and was being planned and progressed by the nature since eighties to fill up the political space being vacated by Congress progressively.. When i say nature it means—–power that control and regulate every thing in life of individual, group, society, or nation. Don t Congress will be there — in the pages of history for a long time to come. People will not forget their good and bad deeds for some decades. Thanks…
You’re right. Absorb all the ruffians in other parties, compulsorily retire only those corrupt babus who are not pliant. Protect a corrupt Rakesh Asthana and similar guys who will do your dirty work. Kill political workers of other parties and call them a result of infighting and if they retaliate and kill yours, play the holy cow and cry like a baby to garner sympathy. Put up a terror accused as a candidate and other countries to put their terror accused behind bars. Propagate a lie and then set your trolls to repeat that a thousand times. Deconstruct any leader who appears to be a threat from any party. truly a well thought out plan.
rahul gupta you are so moral go get sainthood ..silly bloke…you have certification office to stamp truth and lie… stfu smell the coffee and deal with it… NDA is in power what else you can do. it would be better to give constructive criticism but you lack it
Atleast be objective. Be against a policy. Give pros and cons. Unnecessary hatred.
Hahaha yes. Frustrated moron of print….shivan vij is know modi hater who is frustrated beyond redemotion
frustrated nagger whinny viz you don’t have anything nice to write … instead of journalism you should start doing stand up comedy .. don’t hide your anguish in sugar coated word that congress could not make it this time
Holding separate elections increases diversity..I salute the logic of this author
One Nation One pool was on expected lines. It may even turn out to be reality. What is better way of making BJP a real pan India party. It would be a personality cult contest not based on performance. Modi would publish a list of candidates, we Indians have to just to raise our hand in approval and that’s end of election.
nagarajan comical you are come out of fiction stop raising false alarm just because of visceral hatred for modi .
The author is highly frustrated. Everyone thinks that they can make their own opinion of India and particularly journalists feel that they are voice of nation. Please understand Modi has returned power with overwhelming majority and people voted for him. I am sorry, when I am saying people, I don’t include people from Media, journalists and pastime writers.
EVM tampering
The concerns are over exaggerated. Orissa and Telengana are examples where BJP could not do much even tho they had a great haul in the LS polls. I think Indian democracy is maturing
Shivam, just when I started liking your pieces, you screwed it up. Control yourself.
Are you threatening him you bigot?
Hahaha… No my friend, I am a well wisher. He is losing his mind and so are you! Relax and take some time off news portals.
These are dying gasps and convulsions of Modi hating chattering class whose frustration has become unbearable. After 2014 election they consoled themselves that Modi will be a one term phenomenon and with their powerful Lutyens Lobby they will take care of him. To their total chagrin Modi has bested 2014 performance and now they are utterly distraught. They know their narrative is not being bought by the ordinary voters and much as they may try to deride Modi it does not work; in fact to the contrary! The more they spout their venom at Modi the more he gets empathy from the voters. They will find things to oppose if proposed by Modi in a manner they never did with their pay-masters the Gandhi Nehru dynasty and the regional satraps. Let them carry on, India is changing and the days of this elite are over!
Really sad that PRINT allowes such articles to b published…this man needs evaluation..what is the harm if this concept(one election) is studied ..if u disagree ..its ok..but to b so bitter
That is funny but how about some arguments for and against?
Too many reiterations. Looks like Shivam’s fantasies may become true if he keeps the rhetoric running.
Really pathetic and badly written article, just to criticize Modi. Have u even gone to see the 3000 cr statue which u say is waste? It is such a boost , for local tourism, and to a pride of India.
Such views should rather be banned.
Often,one finds naivete overtaking reasoned argument. There can be a debate on the pros and cons of the idea without involving the initiator of the idea. However, pea brained journos are unable to understand the difference.
LEAST OF DOUBT. given the option of ruling the entire Country by the largest BJO MANDATE as a ONE party can bring in better administration, monitor requirements, Budget Controls, etc.
Every state will have a handfull of EXPERINCED representatives from the centre and they can monitor the day-to- day needs of subjects.
Writer seems to have not understood what it means. Earlier most of the state assembly and loksabha sold tons were held at the same time. Due to governors rule, birth of new states led to elections in differen for next 5years without any t stages. Now the stage has come where every year many states are in for elections. Large sums and times are wasted every year. Instead have elections one time and rule for next 5 year s.
Holding Delhi vidhan sabha election this year & holding Bihar elections in 2021 will be 1 great step toward simultaneous polls
Nowadays every Tom Dick and Harry are given permission to write articles, who’s this crap Dixit? How dare he criticize the majority of the population of India who voted for Modi… Dixit I know you feel sour for Modi’s win but my advice please go to good psychiatrist
There are many real questions. Instead, we have this ridiculous article that is dripping with sarcasm and still fails to ask basic questions. What happens if a govt falls and new elections required?
Dear Shivam,
Your frustration is obvious.
It’s the opinion and not the ruling of Mr. Modi.
And Mr Modi is there because a big majority wanted him to be there.
Please don’t spit out your personal frustration as representative of media. Majority of common people know what is better for them.
Dont see why there should be so much ‘sarcasm’, why should the fact that BJP won so many seats in LS Elections be a cause for being sarcastic about it, there used to be simultaneous State and General Elections in India,is a fact that lot of time and resources go into each Election (State/LS), let all Parties desirous of contesting work on the ground, shed Dynastic privileges and bring in selfless, untainted, deserving candidates to the fore, let the best be elected,bane of splinter Parties needs to be eradicated
I see lot of wishful thinking in your comments. In this election there were 43% candidates for MPs with criminal charges filed against them. Out of these, 29% candidates had serous charges, such as murder, rape, etc. filed against them! These percentages are steadily increasing with each election! Soon, say after couple of elections, the parliament would be sitting more than 50% MPs with criminal charges against them! I am sure you know all this, and yet you wish for “selfless, untainted, deserving candidates”! Mere wishing is not going to help you. Democracy would unfailingly ensure that you shall be governed no better than you deserve!
I mean we get that shivam u dont ike modi and shah but could you please give some sensible reason why one nation ,one election is a bad idea. simply because you bitter that your ideology with baggage of nepotism and epic level of corruption doesnt resonates with the common man india doesnt mean every progressive idea is a bad idea. I mean print should look into which people they ask to write an article, this is simply an article by a man who is bitter. if you call it journalism then dont moan when you are trolled by common people. i mean look at the absurdness , mr shivam is insuniating that one nation one election is a danger to diversity of this country. he pretty much is sure that we voters are stupid. these so called fibrels are just too full of themselves. mr shivam high time you realise that you might have fallen victim to ur own propaganda.
If this was meant to be just sarcasm, really good. Otherwise, too stupid an article to consider merit. Every point he makes here against a combined election can be turned around to point against the existing election mode as well. Anyway, Modi is only asking that his pet project be discussed. Is even that too much for the likes of Shivam Vij? What is Modi supposed to do as PM, just twiddle his thumbs?
The problem is that the counter arguments to journalists like Shivam Vij can only be through comments. In an open debate he may just lose.
Not reading or following news these days. Including this piece. No use. India is lost. Lost to Modi. Better to sleep.. Wake up after the reverberations of Modi effect. That is election 2019.. I
Will not be shocked if Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva – Jair Bolsonaro like story erupts some time.
Keep dreaming ..in ur frustration angst….we know from ur religion what scum u belong to….wallow in frustrated hysteria ..u got another decade to rot…while india remains in best hands..
like best hands who judge people by their religion as inferred from their psudo on a comment! yes – that is exactly the nature of Modi effect.
Mr. Joji, don’t sleep – wake up NOW and try to save your country – what is the use of sleeping like kumbhakarna? you need to fight like Abhimunnu instead – without hope and alone if necessary. no one will get rid of the rotters for you – each of us has to do his/her share.
I think the writer is going overboard in his views. The views reflect his dislike for the current dispensation in Delhi and hence is biased. What is wrong with the idea of combined elections for State and Parliament. It will ensure that Political parties are in election mode once in 5 years and will help them to govern better for five years at the least.
Exactly the point. But is the author willing to understand? Don’t think so.
It is only BJP that behaves this way. no one else is in election mode all the time – and no PM in the past worked harder and all the time for elections instead of for the country.
This rests on the assumption that approval ratings will remain in the stratosphere for all time to come.