Priyanka Gandhi Vadra May Join Simultaneous Polls JPC: Sources

May Join Simultaneous Polls JPC: Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Manish Tewari, Sukhdeo Bhagat and Randeep Surjewala will be the party’s representatives in the joint parliamentary committee (JPC) which will scrutinise the simultaneous polls bill, sources said today.

Meanwhile Trinamool Congress has sent the names of Lok Sabha MP Kalyan Banerjee and Rajya Sabha MP Saket Gokhale to the proposed panel.

Two bills that lay down the mechanism for holding simultaneous elections were introduced in Lok Sabha today after a heated debate between the opposition and the government.

Also Read: Atlee Reveals Secret Behind His Films’ Box Office Success

The Congress-led opposition termed the legislation "anti-constitutional". Union law minister Arjun Ram Meghwal clarified that the law will not tamper with the power of the states.

Amid uproar, union home minister Amit Shah told Lok Sabha that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had decided to refer the bill to a joint parliamentary committee.

The bill was introduced after a division of votes. 263 members voted in favour of introduction of the bill and 198 against it.

Also Read: Two Soldiers Killed in Ammunition Loading Accident During Bikaner Training Exercise

Congress, DMK, Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party, NCP-SP, Shiv Sena-UBT and AIMIM opposed the introduction of the bill.

The bill to hold assembly and general elections together was introduced months after a committee headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind held consultations with various stakeholders including political parties. 32 parties supported the idea and 15 parties opposed it.

"Detailed discussions can take place in the JPC. The report of the JPC will be approved by the Cabinet. Then again, there will be a discussion on this (bills) in the House," Amit Shah said in the House.

The BJP and its allies such as the TDP, JD(U) and Shiv Sena have stoutly defended the bills, saying frequent elections are an obstruction to development programmes and simultaneous polls will boost them by cutting down on election expenditure.

Also Read: Hina Khan Looks Stunning in Striped Dress and Blazer for Dinner Date: See Pics