Ram Nath Kovind said that the ‘One Nation, One Election’ model is capable of all-round progress of the Indian population

The ‘One Nation, One Election’ model is capable of advancing the overall development of the Indian populace, according to former President Ramnath Kovind, who also served as the head of the high-level committee on the topic.

Speaking Tuesday at a ceremony in Kolkata, West Bengal, the former president said that the nation will naturally grow by 1–1.5 percent if this approach was put into practice.

“This methodology is effective for the overall development of the Indian populace. Adopting this paradigm will benefit the country in other ways as well. We assembled a group of elite economists and presented the report to them. When it is put into effect, the nation’s GDP growth ratio will automatically rise by 1.5% to 1.5%,” he said.

Notably, former President Ram Nath Kovind led the high-level committee on simultaneous elections that presented its findings to President Droupadi Murmu.

The study, which is 18,626 pages long, is the result of 191 days of research and intensive stakeholder and expert interactions since its creation on September 2, 2023.

Ram Nath Kovind went on to say, “The day our economy rises to 10%-11%, our country will be in line with the top 3rd-4th economies of the world.”

Members of the Lok Sabha voted on the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, before they were officially tabled. The bill suggests holding simultaneous elections for the state legislatures and the Lok Sabha, or “One Nation, One Election.” For in-depth deliberations, the measure will be sent to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC).

The outcome of the voting on the bill’s introduction in the Lok Sabha was announced by the Speaker on Tuesday. 269 members voted in favor (Ayes) and 196 members voted against (Noes).

The Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill, 2024 on ‘One Nation, One Election’ was formally introduced by Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, who then agreed to forward the bill to a JPC in response to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s remarks.