'Hold polls every month': AAP's rejoinder to 'one nation, one election'

A day after the Union cabinet approved the ' One Nation One Election ' initiative, the Aam Aadmi Party ( AAP ) on Thursday criticised the move and upped the ante, stating that polls should be done "every month".

AAP's national spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar said the country needs " one nation one education , one nation one treatment".

"One nation one election should not be implemented in the country, in fact, elections should be held every month so that they remain accountable to the people ... The country needs one nation one education, to ensure similar education is given to a poor child as is given to a rich child. The country also needs one nation one treatment, so that there is no disparity in treatment ... If BJP can actually conduct elections across the country together, it should hold the elections for Maharashtra, Jharkhand, and Delhi first," Kakkar told ANI.

The cabinet approved the proposal of 'One Nation, One Election' on Wednesday aligning polls for both the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced on Wednesday.

After the approval, several party criticised the Centre's move and called it cheap stunt and impractical.

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge claimed that holding simultaneous elections is "impractical" and said that the elections should be called whenever necessary to maintain democracy.

"It is not practical. It will not work. When elections come, and they are not getting any issues to raise, then they divert attention from real issues," Kharge said.

"Elections should be held whenever necessary in a democracy," he added.

Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress MP Derek O'Brien claimed that the decision to hold simultaneous elections is just "another cheap stunt" of the BJP.

Taking a swipe at the Centre, O'Brien said that the government at the Centre cannot organise elections in three states at one go but talks about 'one nation, one election'.

"One nation, one election is just another cheap stunt from the anti-democratic BJP. Why were Maharashtra elections not announced along with elections in Haryana and Jammu & Kashmir? Here's why. The Maharashtra government announced the Ladki Bahin scheme in the budget this June," O'Brien said.

"And also tell us, how many constitutional amendments, including curtailing or extending terms of state assemblies, will be done! Classic Modi-Shah Jumla," he added.