Simultaneous elections will usher in centralised authoritarian political system: CPI(M)

The CPI(M) said that the simultaneous elections as recommended by the Kovind panel will usher in a centralised authoritarian political system in the country.

New Delhi: The CPI(M) on Friday opposed the proposal to hold simultaneous elections as recommended by a panel headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind, saying it will usher in a centralised authoritarian political system in the country.

In a statement, the politburo of the Left party also appealed to all "democratic organisations and citizens" to unitedly oppose this "undemocratic proposal". There are 18 amendments to the Constitution and other statutes proposed in the report of the committee, and these will amount to truncating the parliamentary democratic system and make the Centre more powerful, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) claimed.

"The recommendation of the high-level committee to hold simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, and the steps proposed to achieve this, are retrograde and will usher in a centralised authoritarian political system in the country," it said.