The government spent Rs 95,344 on drafting the 'One Nation, One Election' report, according to the Ministry of Law and Justice. The details were disclosed in response to a Right to Information (RTI) application filed by India Today.
The report assessed the feasibility of holding simultaneous elections across the country. A high-level committee, chaired by former President Ram Nath Kovind, was constituted on September 2, 2023, to work on the report. The committee submitted its findings on March 14, 2024, after 194 days.
The expenditure translates to approximately Rs 491 per day, assuming the committee worked daily. If non-working days were accounted for, the per-day cost could be higher.
The RTI application sought from the government a detailed breakdown of the expenses incurred in drafting the report, including costs on research consultancy, travel, and printing. In response, the government stated that the expenditure was categorised under the following categories:
Information, Computer, and Telecommunication
Office Expenses
Professional Services
Machinery and Equipment
Digital Equipment
Domestic Travel Expenses
Printing and Publication
No payments were made to committee members, as revealed in response to another query. This suggests that the members contributed to the report on an honorary basis.
The committee included Chairman Ram Nath Kovind, Union Minister Amit Shah, former Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad, former Finance Commission Chairman N.K. Singh, former Lok Sabha Secretary General Dr. Subhash C. Kashyap, Senior Advocate Harish Salve, and former Chief Vigilance Commissioner Sanjay Kothari. Arjun Ram Meghwal, Minister of State for Law and Justice, was a Special Invitee, and Dr. Niten Chandra served as the committee's secretary.
On December 17, 2024, the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill and the Union Territories Law (Amendment) Bill were introduced in the Lok Sabha. A total of 269 members supported the bills, while 198 opposed them. The government has recommended referring the bills to a Joint Parliamentary Committee for further consultation.
Source: India Today