BJP and the idea of simultaneous elections: A short history going back 40 years

While the idea of simultaneous elections has been amplified by Prime Minister Narendra Modi since 2014, and especially in his second term, the BJP has long argued that one way to make India’s elections “fair” is to hold them together.

This has been part of election manifestos of the BJP since 1984, the first Lok Sabha election that the party contested at an all-India level. The BJP manifestos also mentioned electronic voting machines (EVMs) and voter identity cards as part of a bundle of electoral reforms well before they became ubiquitous across the country.

1984: Simultaneous elections, EVMs, public funding of polls

Four years after its founding, the BJP fielded 224 candidates in the 1984 elections, which were held less than two months after the assassination of Indira Gandhi. The BJP manifesto resolved to contain four “evils” that “threaten to subvert the freedom and fairness of elections — money power, ministerial power, media power and muscle power”, and presented an 11-point blueprint for electoral reform.

• Give the right of vote to all those above 18;
• Introduce Identity Cards for voters;
• Use electronic voting machines, and change the law as needed;
• Examine the feasibility of introducing the list system of elections;
• Give the right of postal ballot to Indian citizens living abroad;
• Hold state and central elections simultaneously every five years;
• Make the Election Commission a multi-member body; strengthen its independence by charging the expenditure incurred on it to the Consolidated Fund of India, and by providing it with an independent, minimal infrastructure;
• Extend the jurisdiction of the Election Commission to local body elections, and ensure that elections to local bodies are held regularly;
• Arrange for public funding of elections, as is the case in Germany, Japan and most other democratic countries;
• Have party accounts publicly audited;
• To prevent abuse of governmental power by the ruling party, give legal teeth to the Code of Conduct framed by Election Commission; violation of the code shall be made a corrupt practice under the law.

Most of these promises by the BJP, then led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee, were subsequently adopted in the election system. In 1984 though, the Congress won a record 414 seats; the BJP only 2.

1989: Compulsory voting, ban on donations by companies

In the years after Independence, corporate contributions to political parties, a hugely contested issue today, were not regulated. In 1960, a cap was put on political donations and, in 1969, contributions to political parties and for political purposes were banned. In 1985, the Rajiv Gandhi government again allowed corporate contributions to parties.

The 13-point election reforms agenda in the BJP’s 1989 manifesto included a ban on company donations. Some of the party’s 1984 promises were repeated, and some new ideas were introduced — compulsory voting; empowering the Election Commission to monitor all political and election coverage by Doordarshan and Akashvani to ensure these media were not misused; and a ceiling on election expenditure by candidates, their agents, parties and supporters.

1991, 1996: Allowing, incentivising company donations

In its 1991 manifesto, the BJP made a U-turn and promised to allow donations to parties by companies. In a 16-point electoral reforms roadmap laid out in 1996, the party promised suitable incentives for open, official corporate funding to all recognised political parties.

Apart from reiterating its previous promises, the also BJP promised to update and adopt the report of the Dinesh Goswami Committee on electoral reforms (May 1990); grant statutory status to the Code of Conduct; undertake fresh delimitation of Lok Sabha and Assembly constituencies on the basis of the 1991 census; scrutinise all voters’ lists to ensure that no legitimate voter is excluded; and amend the anti-defection law to make it stronger.

The BJP emerged as the single largest party in 1996 and formed its first government at the Centre, which, however, lasted only 13 days.

1998, 1991: Electoral reforms Bill; fixed five-year terms

In 1998, the BJP’s 6-point election reform agenda reiterated its earlier promises. “The BJP will, immediately on assuming office, introduce a comprehensive Electoral Reforms Bill, much of the groundwork for which has already been done but not acted upon,” it said.

In its 1999 Lok Sabha election manifesto, the BJP included its promises on electoral reform under the head “Constitutional and Legal Reforms”. The party said it would take steps to ensure a fixed term of five years for all elected bodies, and would “examine replacing the present No confidence Motion with the German system of ‘Constructive vote of Non-Confidence’”.

2004, 2009: 1984 promises reiterated; simultaneous polls

The BJP’s 2004 manifesto was similar to its 1984 manifesto. The 2009 manifesto focused on only one of these electoral reforms promises — simultaneous elections.

2014: Eliminate criminality in polls, revise spend limits

The 2014 manifesto said the BJP is committed to eliminating criminality in elections. It reiterated the promise of evolving a method of holding Assembly and Lok Sabha elections simultaneously. It also promised to realistically revise expenditure limits.

2019: Holding elections together; a single voters’ list

The BJP’s 2019 manifesto promised simultaneous elections and a single voters’ list for all elections “in order to ensure that every citizen gets the right to exercise his/ her franchise for all public bodies and to avoid confusion created by multiple voter lists”.