Staggered polls cannot be considered an immutable feature of Constitution: ex-CJI

• Context:
  Former Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud submitted a written opinion to the Parliamentary Joint Committee reviewing the 129th Constitutional Amendment Bill, 2024 and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, which propose simultaneous elections across India.

• Key Submissions by Justice Chandrachud :

  • Free and fair elections are a basic feature of the Constitution, but staggered (non-simultaneous) elections are not.

  • Simultaneity does not violate the Constitution's spirit or diminish electoral fairness.

  • Holding polls together will not blur the distinction between Centre and States; assuming that voters will conflate national and state issues reflects a naive view of the electorate.

  • The Indian voter is capable of making informed and distinct choices.

  • The concern that simultaneous polls may hurt smaller/regional parties is not exclusive to the new system and exists even under the current electoral cycle.

  • Staggered elections are not an immutable (unchangeable) feature of the Constitution.

What Are Staggered Elections?

• Staggered elections refer to conducting elections in different phases across time for Lok Sabha, State Assemblies, and local bodies, as done currently.

• Elections occur every few months in some part of India, leading to a perpetual poll cycle, expenditure burden, and frequent imposition of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC).

What Are Simultaneous Elections?

• Conducting general (Lok Sabha) and State Assembly elections together, once in five years.

• It was practiced until 1967, but diverged due to mid-term dissolutions and political instability.

What Is an Immutable Feature?

• An immutable (unchangeable) or basic feature is a part of the Constitution’s basic structure, which cannot be amended, even by Parliament.

• Established in Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (1973).

Examples of Immutable (Basic) Features:

• Supremacy of the Constitution

• Republican and democratic form of government

• Secularism, Federalism, and Rule of Law

• Judicial review and separation of powers

• Free and fair elections (as held in Indira Nehru Gandhi v. Raj Narain, 1975 and PUCL v. Union of India, 2003)

🚫 Staggered Elections are NOT part of the original Constitution, and thus not a basic feature.

Significance for UPSC Mains:

• Simultaneous polls: reduces election costs, curbs policy paralysis, ensures governance continuity.

• Concerns: Impact on federalism, risk of centralizing political narratives, possible marginalisation of regional issues and smaller parties.

• Chandrachud’s submission provides constitutional justification and opens the door for legislative change without violating basic structure doctrine.