New Delhi: Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury declined to be a part of the high-level committee announced by the Centre to examine the possibility of simultaneous elections in the country.

In a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Chowdhury said: "I have no hesitation whatsoever in declining to serve on the Committee whose terms of reference have been prepared in a manner to guarantee its conclusions. It is, I am afraid, a total eyewash."