Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday called for ‘one nation one election’, saying polls taking place every few months impact development works. Modi said a common voter list can be used for holding simultaneous elections at every level—Lok Sabha, Vidhan Sabhas or local panchayat level.
Addressing the concluding session of 80th All India Presiding Officers Conference at Kevadia in Gujarat via video conferencing, the prime minister said digital innovations in the fields of legislatures should be taken up in real earnest for this.
The Prime Minister emphasized the need to spread the values of the Constitution. He said as KYC-Know Your Customer is the key aspect of digital security, it can be a big safeguard for the Constitutional safety shield.
Modi stressed that the language of our laws should be simple and accessible to the common people so that they feel a direct connection with every law. He also said that the process for weeding out the obsolete laws should be simple and suggested that there be an automatic system of repealing the old laws as we amend them.
Modi stressed the importance of duties and said that duties should be treated as the source of rights, dignity and self-confidence. “Our Constitution has many features but one very special feature is the importance given to duties. Mahatma Gandhi was very keen about this. He saw a close link between rights and duties. He felt that once we perform our duties, rights will automatically be safeguarded”, the prime minister said.
Cautioning against the tendency of keeping projects pending, Modi gave the example of Sardar Sarovar which was stuck for years and kept the people of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Rajasthan from the massive benefits which finally accrued when the dam was finally constructed.
Modi said that the strength of our Constitution helps us in the time of difficulties. The resilience of Indian electoral system and reaction to the Corona pandemic has proved this, he said. The prime minister also praised the Members of Parliament for giving more output in recent times and taking a pay cut for helping in the fight against coronavirus.
