By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Sep 20: The Congress has termed the Centre’s “one nation one election” move as yet another ‘jumla’.
“One nation one election is a non-starter. If at all it has to be a law, then it has to be approved by both Houses of the Parliament and more than 50% of the states,” said All India Congress Committee joint secretary and party’s Meghalaya in charge Mathew Antony in Shillong on Friday.
“In national and state elections, people vote for national and regional parties. In district council and municipal elections, they vote for individuals and parties. What is the logic behind mixing them then?” he asked.
Further, he asked the BJP-led NDA why it had conducted the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in multiple phases if it is serious about one nation one election.
According to Antony, the report of a survey conducted in 2015 said 77% of the population will vote for the same party if the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections are held together but if they are held separately, then 61% will vote in different manners.
“It is basically the BJP’s designs to have a Presidential kind of a rule. It is not good,” the Congress leader said.
Citing how GST and demonetisation have been implemented, he said, “If one nation one election is the BJP’s skills, they are an administrative disaster for the country.”
He also said that Manipur is burning but Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not have time to visit the state.
“He does not have the courage to visit Manipur. People are dying as two communities are fighting,” he added.