Simultaneous Assembly Elections in Telugu States? All Eyes on Parliament Session

Hyderabad: Amid expectations of Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and Mizoram state later this year, speculations are rife that the state assembly elections will be deferred to another four to five months. The next Lok Sabha election is expected to be held after April 2024. The BJP-led central government is pushing the idea of one nation, one election. 

The special session of Parliament is scheduled to be held from September 18 to 22 and the political analysts say that the Centre may decide on conducting simultaneous assembly polls and General elections in the session. If that happens, the Telugu states may go in for polls at the same time. 

The political parties including the ruling BRS party are expecting the election commission to hold the elections in December 2023 as the tenure of 119-member Telangana assembly ends on January 16, 2024. The BRS has already released the list of party candidates for the elections while other parties are busy reviewing the applications for party tickets for the Assembly elections.

The centre has constituted a committee headed by former President of India Ram Nath Kovind to explore the possibility of ‘One Nation, One Election’. This announcement sparked speculation that the government may dissolve the current Parliament and will go for early Lok Sabha elections. 

Reacting to Centre’s ‘One Nation, One Election’ proposal, the Telangana Minister KT Rama Rao described it as a cheap tactic of the BJP-led government to deflect attention away from burning issues like inflation etc. He wondered if the Centre would implement it. The BRS leader exuded confidence that his party will win over 90 seats in the state elections. 

Notably, the state Assembly elections were held simultaneously in Andhra Pradesh and newly formed state Telangana after the bifurcation of state in 2014. In the subsequent elections, Telangana chief minister KCR dissolved the assembly and went in for early elections. 

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