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The second meeting of the Joint Committee of Parliament on 'One Nation One Election' Bill, also known as the 'Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024 and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill', 2024 will be conducted on January 31, 2025.
The meeting will be convened at the Main Committee Room at the Parliament Annexe Building in New Delhi at 3 pm. The first meeting on the 'One Nation One Election' bill was conducted on January 8, marked by an intense debate between ruling and opposition parties over the proposed legislation. Senior representatives from the Ministry of Law and Justice made a detailed presentation before the committee, outlining the bill's historical background and highlighting reforms since the 1950s that influenced its drafting. The presentation focused on reducing election-related costs and ensuring governance stability. The officials given many salient points on the basis of which the centre has come up with this legislation. As per the source, after the presentation of the ministry, MPs from various political parties gave their views and raised many issues, which are matters of concern for their party's agenda. The JPC is supposed to examine the 'One Nation, One Election' Bill, which consists of members from Lok Sabha including Congress leaders Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Manish Tewari, NCP's Supriya Sule, TMC's Kalyan Banerjee and BJP's PP Chaudhary, Bansuri Swaraj and Anurag Singh Thakur. The members of the Rajya Sabha are also part of the panel. Two bills - The Constitution 129th Amendment Bill, 2024 and The Union Territories Laws Amendment Bill, 2024 - were introduced in the Lok Sabha during the Winter Session of Parliament to achieve one nation one election. They propose simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies across the country. It was referred to the JPC for scrutiny and discussion on the bill. Opposition members have been opposing the amendments, and have argued that the proposed change could disproportionately benefit the ruling party, giving it undue influence over the electoral process in states, and undermining the autonomy of regional parties. They have also argued that the bills proposing simultaneous elections are against the federal structure. (ANI)
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