Ex-President Kovind-headed committee to explore possibility of 'one-nation, one-election'

The government’s decision comes a day after it decided to call a special session of Parliament between September 18 and 22, the agenda for which is under wraps.

The government has constituted a committee headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind to explore the feasibility of "one nation, one election", opening the possibility of Lok Sabha polls being advanced so that they could be held with a string of State Assembly contests.

Sources said on September 1 that Mr. Kovind will explore the feasibility of the exercise and the mechanism to see as to how the country can go back to having simultaneous Lok Sabha and State Assembly polls, as was the case till 1967.

He is expected to speak to experts and may also consult leaders of different political parties, they said.

The government's decision comes a day after it decided to call a special session of Parliament between September 18 and 22, the agenda for which is under wraps.

Since coming to power in 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been a strong votary for the idea of simultaneous polls, which include those at local bodies, citing financial burden caused by almost continuous election cycle and jolt to development work during the polling period.

Mr. Kovind too had echoed Modi's view and expressed his support to the idea after becoming President in 2017.

Addressing Parliament, he had said in 2018, "Frequent elections not only impose a huge burden on human resources but also impede the development process due to the promulgation of the model code of conduct."