NEW DELHI: Bharatiya Janata Party chief Amit Shah on Monday stepped up the party's demand for simultaneous assembly and Lok Sabha polls in the country. In a letter to the Law Commission, Shah said constantly being in 'election mode' strains national resources and often halting important decisions due to Model Code of Conduct being in place.


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Dismissing claims that holding two sets of polls was against the federal structure of the country, he called the opposition's argument "baseless". He, infact, claimed that the process would strengthen the federal structure of the country. "There is no relation between Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. Voters vote on different issues in both polls. Therefore, we must have faith and trust the voters," he said.


In his letter to the Law Commission, Shah said holding simultaneous polls is not only a concept, but a principle which can be implemented.



A BJP delegation on Monday met the Law Commission Chairman Justice BS Chauhan to hand over Shah's letter, said that necessary amendments to the Constitution should take place to realize the "One Nation, One Election" idea. 


The law panel, which is examining the feasibility of holding simultaneous polls, had sought the views of the political parties before finalising its report. Both the BJP and Congress had stayed away from consultation organised by the commission in this regard last month.


The Congress had met the Commission top brass recently where it had opposed the concept of simultaneous polls. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has all along supported the concept of simultaneous polls.