The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), the premier organization for chartered accountants, will evaluate the financial implications of the proposed ‘One Nation One Election’ (ONOE) initiative. This assessment aims to assist the Parliamentary committee that is currently reviewing the associated bills, providing them with a clearer understanding of the financial consequences.
In March 2024, a high-level committee led by former President Ram Nath Kovind released a report advocating for the simultaneous conduct of Lok Sabha, Assembly, and local body elections.
Following this, in December of the previous year, the government introduced two bills in the Lok Sabha to establish a legal framework for holding Parliamentary and Assembly elections concurrently.
Currently, a 39-member Joint Parliamentary Committee, chaired by BJP member P P Chaudhary, is analyzing the draft bills that are founded on the recommendations from the Kovind panel.
ICAI President Charanjot Singh Nanda informed PTI that the institute will be examining various financial aspects of the ONOE reform. The findings from this assessment will be presented to the Parliamentary committee.
With over 450,000 members, the ICAI plays a crucial role in offering insights on multiple financial legislations and the government’s tax collection initiatives.
The Kovind panel’s report states that conducting simultaneous elections could fundamentally transform the electoral process and governance. It is expected to optimize limited resources and motivate a higher voter turnout.
Additionally, the report references a research paper discussing the macroeconomic effects of aligning electoral cycles. The findings indicate that synchronized elections tend to result in higher economic growth, lower inflation, increased investments, and better quality of expenditures compared to non-synchronized elections.
In a related note, SEBI is set to seek assistance from ICAI in addressing financial fraud issues. For more updates, follow Nation by Newsstate24 Profit.
