Kovind panel sets stage for simultaneous polls, cites growth gains

livemint.com:

NEW DELHI : Simultaneous state and national elections will fuel growth, cool inflation and raise spending quality, a top government panel said, making a pitch for the so-called ‘one nation one election’ backed by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for long. On average, real GDP growth after simultaneous polls was comparatively higher than otherwise, the panel led by former President Ram Nath Kovind said. The committee submitted its report to President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday, recommending Constitutional amendments to facilitate concurrent polls.

Home minister Amit Shah, former leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, former finance commission chairman N.K. Singh and senior advocate Harish Salve were among members of the panel, which unanimously recommended simultaneous polls. “It is a historic day for the country’s democratic system," home minister and committee member Shah wrote on X, announcing the submission of the report.

Quoting a research paper presented by Singh and Prachi Mishra, an IMF economist, the report said on average, real GDP growth is higher following simultaneous elections, while a decrease is found post non-simultaneous episodes. “The magnitudes suggest approximately 1.5 percentage points higher post-pre difference in growth as compared to non-simultaneous elections," the panel said. The paper cited examples to show that when there were periods of decline in growth rates after elections, it was steeper when elections were not simultaneous.