Lok Sabha elections to be advanced to sync with state polls next year?

Lok Sabha elections to be advanced to sync with state polls next year?

• Govt mulling to advance LS polls due in April 2019 to align with polls in MP, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram.
• Telangana, Andhra and Odisha assemblies could also be curtailed by a few months.
• If unrolled in the next Lok Sabha poll, most assemblies will be in sync over a period of 10 years.

NEW DELHI: The possibility of aligning a significant number of state polls with the next Lok Sabha election is being discussed in government circles with the scenario hinging on advancing national polls, along with a few state elections, in sync with assembly polls due in November-December 2018.

The discussion is part of an informal exercise intended to explore how to align Lok Sabha and state polls - over time if not in one go - in keeping with PM Modi's oft-repeated view that staggered assembly elections disrupt governance and are a financial burden. The political permutations, said sources, take into account views of former Lok Sabha secretary general Subhash C Kashyap and a group of secretaries.

The statutory provision that polls can be held within six months of being due is being examined as it will not require complicated measures such an amendment to the Constitution. source