Senior JD(U) leader and a key aide of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday alleged that "one nation one poll" was the BJP's ploy to divert public attention away from its failure, at the Centre, to deliver on price rise and job creation fronts.

State minister Ashok Chaudhary also said that simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly polls were a "debatable" issue and must not be decided without consulting all parties.

"It is a debatable issue. It must not be decided without holding consultations with parties in the states. I shall comment on merits and demerits of one nation one poll once we get to know something formally, beyond media speculations", Choudhary told reporters here.

The JD(U) leader was replying to queries about reports that a committee headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind has been set up to look into the feasibility of "one nation one polls", and that a proposal to the effect could be introduced before the Parliament at the special session convened later this month.

Asked why, in his view, the Centre could be contemplating such a move, Chaudhary replied, "The BJP had come to power promising to control price rise and reduce unemployment. After nearly a decade of its rule at the Centre, people are paying Rs 200 for just a kilogram of arhar daal".

"What to say of job creation, even armed forces seem to have been outsourced with the introduction of Agniveer scheme. All these things are leading to discontent. Talk of one nation one poll could help them deflect attention for some time," said the JD(U) leader, whose party snapped ties with the BJP a year ago.

Meanwhile, the BJP and its allies were of the view that "one nation one poll" would result in reducing the huge expenditure involved in holding elections.

Giriraj Singh, Union minister and BJP MP from Begusarai, said, "I wonder why the opposition is having a belly ache over the mere mention of one nation one poll. I will get to know more about the issue when I am in Delhi. But did simultaneous polls not take place when the Congress ruled the country?" Former Union Minister Upendra Kushwaha, who floated a new party after quitting JD(U) and joined NDA a couple of months ago, was also in favour of one nation one poll.

"It will be great. Simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly polls will drastically reduce the burden on resources," said Kushwaha, whose Rashtriya Lok Janata Dal at present has no member in Bihar legislature or Parliament.

Since coming to power in 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been a strong votary for the idea of simultaneous polls, citing financial burden caused by almost continuous election cycle and jolt to development work during the polling period.

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.