The government spent Rs 95,344 on drafting the ‘One Nation, One Election’ report, prepared by a high-level panel led by former President Ram Nath Kovind. The report, finalized after 194 days, examined the feasibility of simultaneous elections.
The Ministry of Law and Justice said the government spent Rs 95,344 on drafting the ‘One Nation, One Election’ report. The details were disclosed in response to a Right to Information (RTI) application filed by India Today.
Simultaneous elections will be conducted everywhere in the nation. On 2 September 2023, a High-Level Committee of former President of India, Mr. Ram Nath Kovind, presided over the work on the Report. After 194 days, the report was submitted before the Commission on 14 March 2024.
The RTI application requested the government to provide a detailed account of the expenses incurred in preparing the report, including research consultancy, travel, and printing. The government replied that the expenditure was under the following heads:
As revealed in response to another query, no payments were made to committee members. This means that the members contributed to the report on an honorary basis.
The committee’s members were Chairman Ram Nath Kovind, Union Minister Amit Shah, former Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad, former Finance Commission Chairman N.K. Singh, former Lok Sabha Secretary General Dr. Subhash C. Kashyap, Senior Advocate Harish Salve, and former Chief Vigilance Commissioner Sanjay Kothari. Arjun Ram Meghwal, Minister of State for Law and Justice, was a Special Invitee, and Dr. Niten Chandra served as the committee’s secretary.
The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill and the Union Territories Law (Amendment) Bill were introduced in the Lok Sabha on December 17, 2024. The bills were supported by 269 members and opposed by 198. The government has recommended referring the bills to a Joint Parliamentary Committee for further consultation.
