New Delhi [India], March 25: On Tuesday, the Lok Sabha approved a motion to extend the tenure of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on ‘One Nation, One Election’ until the first day of the last week of the Monsoon Session in 2025.
PP Chaudhary, the Chairman of the JPC, moved the motion in the Lok Sabha, seeking an extension for presenting the report on the “One Nation, One Election” Bills, namely the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024 and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024.
The bills under review aim to bring major changes to the Constitution and laws governing Union Territories, with the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill proposing to align the election cycles of the Lok Sabha and state assemblies.
Today, the JPC will hold a crucial meeting at 3 pm, where Attorney General of India R Venkataramani and Justice DN Patel, the former Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court and current Chairperson of the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT), will make representations. These discussions will help the committee further its review of the bills.
The committee’s upcoming sessions include a meeting on April 2, where Justice Hemant Gupta, former judge of the Supreme Court, and Justice BS Chauhan, former Supreme Court judge and Chairman of the 21st Law Commission of India, will provide their insights on the bills.
The JPC had previously met on March 18, where former Solicitor General of India, Harish Salve, and former Law Commission Chairman, Ajit Prakash Shah, participated. The meeting lasted for five hours, with members discussing various concerns and clarifications on the bills.
PP Chaudhary had previously mentioned that discussions with experts are helping clear members’ doubts. He also indicated that a portal for the ‘One Nation, One Election’ initiative is being developed, where stakeholders can share their opinions on the bill clause-by-clause.