Election dates for five state assemblies, including Uttar Pradesh, are expected to be announced in May. Elections are likely to be held in one phase in the other four states and in six to eight phases in UP. The term of Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, Uttarakhand, Goa and Punjab state assemblies will end soon.
Advice
Following this, elections will be held here in the coming month of Feb. – March. Of these, only the Congress government is located in Punjab. The BJP and the governments are located in the other four states. On the one hand, the political parties have already launched a serious campaign. On the other hand, the Election Commission is engaged in intensive consultations on election arrangements. Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra began his three-day visit to Uttar Pradesh yesterday.
He consults with political parties, government and police officials; He is also in consultation with state election officials. Consultative meetings have already been held in Punjab, Uttarakhand and Goa. Following Uttar Pradesh, the survey is to be carried out in Manipur. Goa, Manipur, Punjab and Uttarakhand are scheduled to go to the polls in a single phase.
Letter
Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state, has decided to hold elections in six to eight phases. Last time the election was held here in six phases. The announcement of the election date is expected to be made on January 5. The Election Commission has already advised the state governments to exercise more security restrictions in the states where the elections are to be held as the spread of the ‘omega’ type corona virus is on the rise. The Election Commission had recently written to these states to expedite the process of vaccinating all voters.
Insistence of all parties
Chief Election Commissioner Sushil Chandra, who is in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh to inspect the election preparations, said yesterday: “We have consulted with the Union Health Secretary and others about the conduct of the elections. All parties in Uttar Pradesh have called for holding elections with appropriate security measures. This will be decided in consultation. We are exploring measures such as increasing the number of polling booths and increasing the registration time.
Also all election staff will be forced to be vaccinated with two ‘doses’. In Uttar Pradesh, 86 per cent of the population has been vaccinated with a single dose. We urge all voters to get at least one dose of the vaccine. But it will not be made compulsory. We can intervene only after the election date is announced and the election code of conduct comes into force, ”he said. – New Delhi Correspondent –
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