Under the scheme recommended by the High Level Committee on Simultaneous Elections, if the Lok Sabha or a state assembly is dissolved before completing its term, the fresh election that follows would be held for which period?
- A.A fresh full term of five years
- B.Only the unexpired term of the dissolved House
- C.A fixed term of three years
- D.A term decided by the Election Commission for each case
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is B, only the unexpired term of the dissolved House. The committee recommended that where a House has to be dissolved early, because of a hung House or a no-confidence motion for example, the mid-term election should be for the remainder of the five-year period of the House that was dissolved, which the report calls the unexpired term. This keeps the common cycle intact, because the new House still ends on the original date. Option A is wrong because a fresh five-year term is exactly what breaks the synchronisation, as happened after 1967. Option C is wrong because no fixed shorter term was proposed. Option D is wrong because the length of a House is settled by the Constitution and the proposed Article 82A, not by a decision of the Election Commission, whose role under Article 324 is to conduct the election.
Read the full article: One Nation One Election: Articles, Reports and Bills
Practice Questions
View allWhich Article of the Constitution of India fixes the term of the Lok Sabha at five years from the date appointed for its first meeting?
- A.Article 81
- B.Article 83
- C.Article 85
- D.Article 172
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Article 83(2) provides that the House of the People shall continue for five years from the date appointed for its first meeting and no longer, and that the expiration of that period operates as a dissolution of the House; it also allows Parliament to extend the term by up to…
Read the full explanation →In which year was the last general election held simultaneously for the Lok Sabha and all the state legislative assemblies?
- A.1957
- B.1962
- C.1967
- D.1971
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The first four general elections, in 1951-52, 1957, 1962 and 1967, were held simultaneously for Parliament and the state assemblies, and 1967 was the last of them.
Read the full explanation →The High Level Committee on Simultaneous Elections, which submitted its report in March 2024, was chaired by which of the following?
- A.Pranab Mukherjee
- B.Ram Nath Kovind
- C.M. N. Venkatachaliah
- D.B. P. Jeevan Reddy
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The High Level Committee on Simultaneous Elections was constituted on 2 September 2023 under the chairmanship of former President Ram Nath Kovind and submitted its report on 14 March 2024, recommending a two-step synchronisation of elections and a single electoral roll.
Read the full explanation →Which report of the Law Commission of India, submitted in 1999 on the reform of the electoral laws, recommended holding simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and the state assemblies?
- A.The 170th Report
- B.The 255th Report
- C.The 79th Report
- D.The 18th Report
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The Law Commission of India, in its 170th Report on Reform of the Electoral Laws in 1999, recommended that there should be one single election for the Lok Sabha and all the legislative assemblies once in five years, and the Commission returned to the subject in a draft report in…
Read the full explanation →The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024 proposes to insert which new Article to provide for the appointed date and the synchronisation of assembly terms?
- A.Article 82A
- B.Article 83A
- C.Article 172A
- D.Article 324A
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The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024, introduced in the Lok Sabha on 17 December 2024, proposes a new Article 82A under which the President notifies an appointed date on the first sitting of the Lok Sabha after a general election, and the term of every assembly constituted…
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