In order to keep the promises made by the BJP in its manifesto for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the incumbent government now makes a serious attempt for a common electoral roll and hold elections simultaneously to the Lok Sabha, state assemblies, and local bodies. In this direction, the prime minister’s office held a meeting with representatives of the Election Commission and the Law Ministry in August 2020 to discuss the possibility of having a single voters list. The advocacy for a single voters list is not new. The Law Commission recommended it in its 255th report in 2015. The EC too adopted a similar stance in 1999 and 2004.
Different Electoral Rolls Presently many states in India follow dual voters’ list, one for the panchayat and municipality elections and another for the Parliament and Assembly elections. This distinction originates from the fact that the supervision and conduct of elections in our country are entrusted with two constitutional authorities — the Election Commission (EC) of India and the State Election Commissions (SECs).
Established in accordance with the Constitution on January 25, 1950, the EC administers elections to the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, State Legislative Assemblies in India, and the offices of the President and Vice President in the country. On the other hand, the SECs, supervise municipal and panchayat elections and are free to prepare their own electoral rolls for local body elections, and this exercise does not have to be coordinated with the EC.
Each SEC is governed by a separate state Act. Some state laws allow the SEC to borrow and use the EC’s voter’s rolls in toto for the local body elections. In others, the state commission uses the EC’s voters list as the basis for the preparation and revision of rolls for municipality and panchayat elections. Currently, all states, except Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Odisha, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, and the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, adopt EC’s rolls for local body polls.
The Need and Benefits The common electoral roll and simultaneous elections is a way to save an enormous amount of effort and expenditure, as per the government. It is argued that the preparation of a separate voters list causes duplication of essentially the same task between two different agencies, thereby duplicating the effort and the expenditure.
Implementation Mechanism Two options to make a way for common electoral roll emerged at the meeting held at PMO. First is to carry out a constitutional amendment to Articles 243K and 243ZA which are related to the power of superintendence, direction and control of preparation of electoral rolls and the conduct of local body elections to the SECs. The amendment would make it mandatory to have a single electoral roll for all elections in the country. Second option is to persuade the state governments to change their respective laws and adopt the Election Commission’s (EC) voters list for municipal and panchayat polls.