"Idea Of Simultaneous Polls Good But Wishful Thinking," Says TRS Leader

Though good, the idea of simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies sounds to be a wishful thinking, and Indian democracy needs to attain enough maturity to embrace such a proposal, says senior TRS leader B Vinod Kumar.

The deputy floor leader of TRS (Telangana Rashtra Samiti) in Lok Sabha, said his party's view is that the synchronised polls are good for the nation but a "drastic change" is needed in the Constitution to adopt the model.

"I think, it's a difficult task; all the political parties should agree, Parliament should agree, all the State Legislatures should agree," the Karimnagar Lok Sabha member told PTI.

Asked if he thought the simultaneous polls idea would remain an issue for debate and may not take off, Mr Vinod Kumar said: "May be", and agreed that it's not a very practical proposition.

"Indian democracy should further mature itself to think on those lines (simultaneous polls)", Mr Vinod Kumar  added.

"Yes, definitely it's a wishful thinking, (but) it's good".

Mr Vinod Kumar spoke about practical difficulties in the event of dissolution of Lok Sabha and Assemblies for political reasons before the end of their term and related issues.

Odisha Chief Minister and BJD president Naveen Patnaik yesterday announced his party's support to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's proposal for holding simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies.