‘One Nation, One Election’: Top court ‘declines’ parliamentary panel visit; committee claims meet ‘shelved’

New Delhi (TIP): A parliamentary panel examining the ‘One Nation, One Election’ Bills has shelved its proposed visit to the Supreme Court on October 6 for an interaction with judges on the legislation, committee chairman PP Chaudhary said on Thursday amid concerns raised by Opposition leaders over separation of powers. Chaudhary said the visit had been put off due to scheduling conflicts.
The proposed visit had drawn objections from the Opposition, with at least one member of the joint committee writing to Chaudhary seeking its cancellation, it is learnt. However, sources said the Supreme Court had declined the committee’s proposal for a meeting. “No meeting is happening with the Supreme Court on ‘One Nation, One Election’,” a source said. Earlier in the day, Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal raised objections to the proposed visit, calling it “unconstitutional” and contrary to the concept of separation of powers.
Sibal, a senior advocate, said he had never come across a parliamentary panel holding an interaction with Supreme Court judges over proposed legislation that could later come before the court for adjudication. He claimed a programme circulated by the Chaudhary-led committee listed a “local study visit” to the Supreme Court on October 6, including an informal discussion with the CJI and other judges on simultaneous polls.