'Effort is to form consensus,' says One Nation-One Election JPC Chairman PP Chaudhary

New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader MP PP Chaudhary who is the chairman of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on 'One Nation, One Election' has expressed confidence that a consensus will be built among the members of the Parliament who are part of the JPC.
He said that the efforts of the JPC will be to reach a consensus and scrutinise the bills in an "unbiased" manner. Chaudhary, highlighted that the parliamentary panel will hear from every stakeholder in this matter.
"Our efforts will be to listen to people from every field - be it from political parties, civil societies, or judiciary. We want to take everyone's input. We will examine the bills introduced by the government in an unbiased manner and with an open mind. Our effort will be to reach a consensus since the members who are part of the committee are eminent (personalities). I have faith that we will work for the nation's interest and reach a consensus," Chaudhary told ANI.
He further added that the concerned ministry will brief the members on the first day of the meeting today. The BJP MP said that they will take everyone's opinion to figure out how to move forward.
"Today, on the first day, the members will be briefed by the concerned ministry. We will take everyone's opinion on how to move forward step by step. Our effort will remain to be transparent and rise above the party line to reach a consensus for the nation's interest," Chaudhary added.
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.
In reaction to this, Union Law and Justice Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal earlier said that the proposal is "practical and important" and will be discussed from the start of the new year with the first meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee to take place on January 8.
In an interview with ANI, Meghwal said the proposal for simultaneous elections to assemblies and Lok Sabha has been discussed for quite some time and is not against the federal structure.