India’s ruling National Democratic Alliance is exploring a plan to hold simultaneous elections in 22 states alongside the 2029 Lok Sabha general elections, potentially years ahead of the timeline proposed in the One Nation One Election Bills currently before a parliamentary committee.
Under the plan, the Assemblies of all 22 NDA-ruled states and union territories would be dissolved by January 2029, with their respective Governors acting on advice from the Council of Ministers, according to sources familiar with the discussions reported by the Indian Express.
What the plan entails
Of the 22 NDA-governed states, 11 face elections in the next two years before the 2029 national polls. Four states – Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, and Odisha – already hold elections simultaneously with the Lok Sabha. For the remaining states, the plan would mean cutting short existing Assembly terms by up to four years.
States with elections due in 2027 include Goa, Gujarat, Manipur, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, whose terms would be shortened by three years. Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Rajasthan, and Tripura, with elections scheduled for 2028, would see four-year cuts to their current terms.
Constitutional mechanism
Article 174(2)(b) of the Indian Constitution grants Governors the power to dissolve an Assembly, typically on the advice of the Council of Ministers. Once dissolved, the Representation of the People Act 1950 mandates elections within six months. Several BJP Chief Ministers, including those of Goa, Uttarakhand, Haryana, and Delhi, have already expressed public support for the plan.
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta told the Joint Committee of Parliament: “If aligning election schedules at the national level requires a suitable adjustment in Delhi’s tenure, the Delhi Government is willing to consider it with a positive approach.”
The committee chairman, PP Chaudhary, said: “It is for the NDA Chief Ministers to decide. This issue is outside the mandate of the committee.” The Bills under consideration – the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024 – currently set the earliest simultaneous elections for 2034.
Opposition pushback
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh reiterated the party’s opposition: “The Congress is opposed to One Nation One Election. It is unconstitutional, anti-democratic and against accountability.” The Congress and DMK MPs, among others, opposed the introduction of the Bills in Parliament in 2024, calling them unconstitutional.
The Joint Committee, formed in December 2024, is expected to submit its report during the winter parliamentary session this year. Meanwhile, the NDA appears to be charting an accelerated path that could reshape India’s electoral landscape far sooner than anticipated.
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