Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M. Thambi Durai’s support to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposal for conducting simultaneous polls to Lok Sabha and the Assembly has evoked strong condemnation from veteran politician and AIADMK Rajya Sabha MP S.R. Balasubramoniyan, who described it as a ridiculous idea.
“Mr. Modi has proposed the idea to divert the criticism against him and his government’s failure on various fronts. Why should State governments sacrifice their full-term for his political game? In the case of Tamil Nadu, it has to lose two years in office if it agrees to face elections in 2019. Moreover, a snap poll will prevent a State government from finishing the development and welfare projects it had promised,” Mr. Balasubramoniyan told The Hindu on Sunday.
Mr. Thambi Durai, in a letter to Mr. Modi, supported simultaneous polls on the ground that it would save time and money and provide uninterrupted governance.
“The issues involved in Lok Sabha polls are entirely different from the issues on which the Assembly elections are fought. Simultaneous elections would leave voters confused instead of offering a clear choice. Moreover, President’s rule should be imposed in States where the tenure of Assemblies will end between 2018 and 2019,” Mr. Balasubramoniyan said.
Mr. Balasubramoniyan said the idea of simultaneous elections from panchayats to Parliament may look nice only on paper.
“It is a ridiculous idea and very difficult to implement,” Mr. Balasubramoniyan said.