New Delhi: Meghalaya will vote on April 11 in the first of the seven phases of the Lok Sabha elections, which were announced by the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Sunday.
There will be simultaneous voting for by-election to the vacant Selsella Assembly seat on April 11, and results will be declared on May 23.
Following Sunday’s announcement, the ECI kick-started a mega electoral battle where the BJP will pitch for a re-election of the Modi government amid the Opposition’s efforts for a united fight to unseat it.
The polling will be held on April 11, April 18, April 23, April 29, May 6, May 12 and May 19 for 543 Lok Sabha seats across the country in which nearly 90 crore voters would be eligible to vote, Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora told a packed press conference here.
Assembly elections will also be held in Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and Odisha simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls, the CEC said.
However, elections for Jammu and Kashmir assembly have been deferred, the EC said citing security reasons.
The state has been under President’s Rule after the ruling alliance between the BJP and Peoples Democratic Party fell apart last year.
Polling for parliamentary and assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal and Sikkim will be held in the first phase on April 11. Parliamentary and assembly polls will be held in Odisha across the first four phases. Twenty-two states and union territories (UTs), including Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Telangana, will have Lok Sabha election in a single phase while it will be spread across seven phases in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal.
Karnataka, Manipur, Rajasthan and Tripura will have Lok Sabha election in two phases, while Assam and Chhattisgarh will have three-phase polling.
Four states — Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha — will have elections in four phases. Jammu and Kashmir will have five-phase voting.
The CEC said the model code of conduct would come into immediate effect from Sunday.
Among other restrictions, the model code bars the government from announcing any policy move that may impact voters’ decision.
The EC said the ‘voter verifiable paper audit trail’ (VVPAT) will be used in all polling stations this time. Ten lakhs polling stations would be set up this time as against about nine lakhs in 2014. EVMs and postal ballots will carry pictures of candidates.
In 2014, the BJP had won 282 seats handing a crushing defeat to the 10-year-rule of the United Progressive Alliance led by Congress.
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi will seek to retain power, the opposition is seeking to put up a spirited fight to defeat the ruling BJP.
In the press briefing, Arora said all political advertisements on social media will need pre-certification and the candidates will have to give details of their social media accounts to the EC. The CEC said 91 constituencies will go for polls in first phase, 97 in second phase, 115 in third phase, 71 in fourth, 51 in fifth, 59 in sixth and 59 in the seventh phase.
In 2014, Lok Sabha polls were held in nine phases beginning April 7 and ending May 9. Votes were counted on May 16. (PTI)
Schedule for Shillong, Tura LS polls and Selsella by-election
Poll Events Schedule
Date of issue of gazette notification March 18
Last date of nominations March 25
Date for scrutiny of nominations March 26
Last date for withdrawal of candidatures March 28
Date of polling April 11
Date of counting May 23
Date before which poll shall be completed May 27 May 27