Dehradun: The Central Election Committee of Congress on Saturday released a list of 53 candidates for the upcoming Uttarakhand Assembly elections.
The list didn't include the names of Harish Rawat, Harak Singh Rawat, and his daughter-in-law. Leader of Opposition Pritam Singh and state Congress president Ganesh Godiyal to battle from Chakrata and Srinagar seats respectively. While Yashpal Arya & his son Sanjeev Arya, who joined Congress from BJP in Oct, get tickets from Bajpur & Nainital respectively.
The hill state will go for polls in a single phase on February 14 with the last date for nomination of candidates fixed for January 28.
Earlier in the day, the CEC meeting for the second list in Punjab was held on Saturday which remained inconclusive due to the difference of opinion between Punjab Congress Chief Navjot Singh Sindhu and Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi.
The assembly elections are slated to begin from next month in five states- Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, and Manipur.
The Election Commission on Saturday announced that its ban on physical rallies, roadshows will continue till January 31.
Meanwhile, yesterday the BJP had also released a list of 59 candidates for the upcoming polls. It was announced that Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami will contest the election from the Khatima constituency, while former CM Trivendra Singh Rawat offered not to contest the polls. Whereas Vijay Rawat, brother of India's first CDS Gen Bipin Rawat who joined the party on Wednesday, is expected to feature in the next candidates' list.
In the last Assembly elections held in 2017, the Bharatiya Janata Party registered victory in 57 out of 70 assembly seats.