Holding simultaneous polls is against federal structure of Indian constitution: Jagdeep Chhokar

By A Representative
Speaking at the Western Regional Consultation on Electoral and Political Reforms, organized by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and the Gujarat Election Watch (GEW) in Ahmedabad, top academic Prof Jagdeep Chhokar, founder-trustee, ADR, said that the federal structure is “basic to the Indian Constitution and holding simultaneous elections is against the federal nature of the constitution and it will amount to changing the constitution itself.”
He added, one main reason given by the government to hold simultaneous elections is to bring down the cost of elections, though “nobody knows the exact amount of election expenditure during elections.”
Speaking on electoral malpractices, former Gujarat chief minister Suresh Mehta said the main reason for for this is “lack of manpower with the Election Commission of India (ECI)”, adding, “During elections ECI is dependent on state administration and therefore it is unable to curb electoral malpractices effectively as they are under pressure from the ruling party in government.” Pointing towards “misuse of money power in elections”, he recommended, “ECI should have greater powers to punish election officers who are non-serious in combatting the menace of electoral malpractices.”
Prof Rohit Shukla, president, Drushti Foundation, expressed his apprehensions regarding ‘electoral bonds’ and the recent steps taken by the Government of India (GoI) by change relevant provisions of the Income tax Act, the Representation of People’s Act 1951 and the Companies Act 2013. He said, “The implications could be retrograde as far as transparency is concerned. He underlined the need to inculcate attributes with regard to funding of political parties that will enhance their transparency and accountability aspects rather than making it more and more opaque.”
Among those who participated in the discussions included Pankti Jog, Gujarat state coordinator, GEW, and Maj Gen Anil Verma (retd), who is head, ADR, apart from representatives of non-profit organizations, government bodies, political parties, media and academia.

A fearless spirit lost: Rebecca Thomson dies at 17-hour Catalina Swim Mark

By Harsh Thakor On July 26, 2026, Rebecca “Becky” Thomson suffered cardiac arrest while attempting the Catalina Channel Swim — a marathon open water crossing from Catalina Island to the California mainland. After swimming for 17 hours, Thomson collapsed in the water. Despite the painstaking efforts of emergency responders and the medical staff at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, she succumbed to a devastating hypoxic brain injury and died Friday evening.

Hyderabad-based Urdu university "bars" entry of its new chancellor, who had "initiated" reforms in institute

Counterview Desk In an unusual controversy, Aslam Parvaiz, vice-chancellor of of the Hyderabad-based Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU) has restricted the entry of its newly appointed Chancellor, Firoz Bakht Ahmed, allegedly because he was trying to initiate reforms, including setting up of a Maulana Azad Center for Composite Culture and Progressive Studies, Model Madrasa, Center for Empowerment of Muslim Women, Course for the Development of Legal Vocabulary and Legal Consciousness in Urdu, and so on.

Did the Sabarmati riverfront make Ahmedabad more vulnerable?

By Rajiv Shah Currently living in Los Angeles, I find myself missing Ahmedabad . Not because I miss living through the city's recent devastating floods—which, experts say, resulted from a combination of extreme meteorological events and chronic urban infrastructure bottlenecks—but because I am unable to make an on-the-spot assessment of the disaster.

Counterview

Search This Blog