EC Announces Dates For Assembly Polls In UP, Punjab, Goa, U'khand & Manipur | Key Highlights

In the 2017 elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged victorious in 312 seats in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh Assembly.

New Delhi: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Saturday announced dates for the five states set to witness assembly elections this year. The states going to the polls include Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Manipur, Uttarakhand, and Goa.

"As COVID cases soared in view of Omicron variant, ECI held meetings with Union Health Secretary and Home Secretary, experts, and health secretaries of States. After taking these views and ground situation, ECI decided to announce polls with safety norms in place": Chief Election Commissioner of India Sushil Chandra said at the press conference, as quoted by news agency ANI.

The Election Commission in its presser further stated that "we aim to conduct COVID-safe elections in five states with maximum voter participation with extensive preparations".

Assembly elections in all five states will be completed in total seven phases.

Uttar Pradesh Election Dates

According to ECI's announcement, Uttar Pradesh will have seven-phase polling starting from February 10 (Thursday) till March 7 (Monday).

The polling dates for the seven phases are February 10, 14, 20, 23, 27, March 3, and 7.

In the 2017 elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged victorious in 312 seats in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh Assembly.

The Samajwadi Party (SP)-Congress alliance managed to win only 54 seats, while the Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) bagged only 19 seats.

Punjab Election Date

Punjab will have a single-phase election as it is set to undergo polling on February 14 (Monday).

A total of 117 assembly constituencies in Punjab will be going to the polls to elect MLAs for the 16th Punjab assembly. The schedule for the 2022 Punjab Assembly Election is mentioned below with dates for the polls and counting of votes, as listed in the ECI notification.

In the 2017 Punjab Assembly elections, the Congress emerged victorious in 77 seats in the 117-member House. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) emerged as a distant second bagging 20 seats, while the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) managed to win only 18 seats.

Uttarakhand Election Date

Voters in Uttarakhand will exercise their franchise on February 14 (Monday).

In Uttarakhand, Congress suffered a rout in the 2017 assembly elections emerging victorious in just 11 seats. The BJP registered a comprehensive win in the hill state and bagged 57 seats in the 70-member Uttarakhand Assembly.

Goa Election Date

The coastal state of Goa will have polling on February 14 (Monday).

In the 2017 Goa polls, the BJP won only 13 seats in the 40-member assembly. The Congress registered victory in 17 constituencies. The BJP, however, staked a claim to form the government with the support of regional parties.

Manipur Election Dates

Manipur will witness two-phase polling. The first phase of voting will take place on February 27 (Friday) and the second phase will be on March 3 (Wednesday).

In Manipur, the Congress-led alliance won 28 seats in the 60-member assembly, while the BJP bagged 21 seats in the last polls.

Counting Of Votes: March 10, 2022 (Thursday)

Physical Rallies Banned Till Jan 15, 24.9 Lakh First-Time Electors Registered

Notably, the physical rallies of political parties or probable candidates or any other group related to elections have been banned till January 15. No roadshows, padyatras, cycle or bike rallies, and processions shall be allowed till January 15.

ECI stated that it will subsequently review the situation and issue further instructions accordingly. 

To ensure voters' safety, all polling stations will be equipped with COVID-mitigation facilities including sanitisers and masks while the number of booths has been increased.

Senior citizens above 80 years of age, persons with disabilities, and COVID-19 patients can vote by postal ballot, CEC Sushil Chandra stated.

Meanwhile, he informed that a total of 18.34 crore electors including service voters will take part in this election out of which 8.55 crore are women electors. 24.9 lakh first-time electors are registered in the five states including Uttar Pradesh.

ECI has mandated that at least one polling station managed exclusively by women shall be set up in every Assembly constituency. "Our officers have identified much more than that. There are 690 Assembly seats but we are setting up 1620 such polling booths": CEC Sushil Chandra stated.

(With Agency Inputs)