Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury on Saturday declined to be a part of the 'One Nation One Election (ONOE)' panel constituted by the Centre.
In a big move, the Ministry of Law and Justice notified the 8-member panel on Saturday to give recommendations on Centre's ONOE proposal.
Why did Adhir Ranjan decline to be a part?: In a letter written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday, Chowdhury called the formation of the committee a "total eyewash".
"I have no hesitation whatsoever in declining to serve on the Committee whose terms of reference have been prepared in a manner to guarantee its conclusions. It is, I am afraid, a total eyewash," he said in the letter.
"Moreover, the sudden attempt to thrust a constitutionally suspect, pragmatically non-feasible and logistically unimplementable idea on the nation, months before the general elections, raises serious concerns about ulterior motives of the government," Chowdhury wrote.
"Furthermore, I find that the current LOP in the Rajya Sabha has been excluded. This is a deliberate insult to the system of Parliamentary democracy. In these circumstances, I have no option but to decline your invitation," the Congress leader wrote.
What the Centre's resolution said: The resolution, dated 2 September, stated that as "in the national interest it is desirable to have simultaneous elections in the country, the Government of India hereby constitutes a High-Level Committee to examine the issue of simultaneous elections and make recommendations for holding simultaneous elections in the country."
Who are the other members?: The panel consists of Shah, ex-MP Ghulam Nabi Azad, ex-chairman of the 15th Finance Commission NK Singh, former Lok Sabha Secretary General Dr Subhash C Kashyap, senior advocate Harish Salve, and former Chief Vigilance Commissioner Sanjay Kothari are the other members of the committee.
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