MGP welcomes panel to study feasibility of 'one nation, one election'

Panaji: The Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) on Friday welcomed the Centre's decision to appoint a committee headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind to study the feasibility of "one nation, one election".

Talking to PTI, MGP president Deepak Dhavalikar said the decision of having “one nation, one election” will go a long way in providing a level playing field to all political parties.

The government has constituted a committee headed by Kovind to explore the feasibility of "one nation, one election", opening the possibility of Lok Sabha polls being advanced so that they could be held with upcoming state assembly elections.

Sources said Kovind will explore the feasibility of the exercise and the mechanism to see as to how the country can go back to having simultaneous Lok Sabha and state assembly polls, as was the case till 1967.

“The MGP welcomes the Centre's decision to appoint a committee headed by Kovind to decide on 'one nation, one election' policy,” he said.

The decision will not only help minimise election expenditure but will also avoid frequent imposition of code of conduct, Dhavalikar said.

The move will ensure that loopholes such as dual voting are curbed, he said.

A partner in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the MGP is also part of the Goa government with two MLAs in the state assembly.