Proposal to change India’s voting system to allow simultaneous polls fails to pass lower Parliament

NEW DELHI — A controversial legislation submitted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government to change India’s voting system failed to pass Tuesday in the country’s lower house of Parliament.

Law minister, Arjun Ram Meghwal, presented the legislation which proposed allowing elections for state assemblies and the national parliament to be held simultaneously. However, it was not approved as the vote fell short of the required two-thirds majority; only 269 lawmakers voted in favor of the proposal while 198 were against it.

The government says simultaneous polls will result in higher economic growth and pave the way for better governance as they will reduce the frequency of election campaigns and expenses and allow politicians to focus on their work.

However, India’s opposition has strongly objected to the legislation, which has been under review for over a year. Critics say the proposed system will undermine federalism and risks shifting India toward a presidential election model and could give unfair poll advantage to the governing parties at the federal level in state elections.

The South Asian country of more than 1.4 billion people has 28 states and eight federal territories. Currently, staggered state and parliamentary elections are held at different times across India, with few state polls scheduled almost every year.

India’s last national election was held in seven phases over 44 days.

Meghwal said on Tuesday the government was willing to send the legislation to a parliamentary committee for wider consultation.

As per the draft, the legislation if approved as a law can be put into action in “the first sitting” of the lower house of the parliament after a national election — which implies it can’t be implemented until 2029 when the current government’s term ends.

Modi’s government has long advocated for the proposed system and appointed a nine-member panel last year to look into whether it was feasible. The panel recommended the plan in March, saying it would help reduce wasting public funds and increase voter turnout.

The legislation must be approved by both houses of the parliament by a two-thirds majority in each before it becomes law. The new system, if approved, would also require amendments to India’s Constitution and approval from all states and federal territories, experts say.

Unlike its two previous terms, Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party does not have a majority in the lower house of the parliament and banks on its partners from the National Democratic Alliance and friendly parties to get laws passed.