Election Commissioner Om Prakash Rawat has stated that Election Commission is geared up for holding simultaneous polls to Lok Sabha and all state-assemblies through Electronic Voting Machines equipped with Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (EVM with VVPAT) by September 2018. Idea is not bad. But Present system cannot guarantee for same cycle be always maintained in future because hung assemblies and unstable governments requiring mid-term polls in some states. For ensuring cycle of simultaneous polls always maintained, system first should be modified whereby Prime Minister and Chief Ministers in center or a state may be simultaneously elected with Speaker and Deputy Speaker through secret and compulsory votes of all members of the Lower House through EVM with VVPAT on nominations signed by at least 34-percent members. Members not participating in such election-process may lose right to vote in the House through retaining its membership. Such elected persons may be removed by a no-confidence motion voted through same process but with compulsion to name alternate leader in the same motion.
Even President and Vice President should be simultaneously elected in the same manner as President is elected within three months of formation of new Lok Sabha on nominations signed by at voters with least 34-per cent value-votes to ensure direct election through EVM with VVPAT. In case of mid-term vacancy caused at post of President, Vice President may be made President for rest of the term with an interim Vice President elected by only members of Parliament.
Madhu Agrawal
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
