Why it in news?

• Most Opposition parties responded negatively to Election Commissioner O.P. Rawat’s assertion on Wednesday that the Election Commission would be ready to hold simultaneous elections by September 2018.  

Rationale for rejection

• It was neither feasible nor realistic, besides being anti-democratic.
• There had been no consensus among the parties.
• Many of them said it would be impracticable as long as Article 356 — which allows the Centre to dismiss a State government if law and order fails — is on the statute book.
• Ignored the reality of mid-term polls, a multi-party system, and the diversity of Indian polity.
• Neither the Election Commission nor the government could take a decision on simultaneous elections because it required national consensus.

What is Article 356

• Article 355 imposes a duty on the Centre to ensure that the government of every state is carried on in

accordance with the provisions of the Constitution.

• It is this duty in the performance of which the

Centre takes over the government of a state under Article 356 in case of failure of constitutional

machinery in state.

• This is popularly known as ‘President’s Rule’. It is also known as ‘State Emergency’ or ‘Con-stitutional Emergency’.