There will be over 51,000 polling stations in Gujarat for the upcoming Assembly elections
There will be over 51,000 polling stations in Gujarat for the upcoming Assembly elections
Voting for the Gujarat Assembly elections will be held in two phases on December 1 and December 5, the Election Commission (EC) announced on Thursday. The counting of votes will take place on December 8 along with that of Himachal Pradesh.
Of the total 182 Assembly seats in the State, voting for 89 seats will be held on December 1 and the remaining 93 seats on December 5.
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar, before announcing the poll schedule, paid tributes to the victims of the Morbi bridge tragedy that killed at least 135 people.
He said that political parties must explain why they selected candidates with criminal backgrounds. He also said that via the ‘Know Your Candidate’ App, voters will be informed about all the details, including criminal history and funds, of all the candidates.
“If voters witness any untoward activities, like use of muscle power or money power, they can use the cVIGIL application to raise a complaint from the booth itself,” he said.
“As a unique initiative to facilitate voters, a polling station will be set up in a shipping container at Aliabet in the Bharuch district with AMF for 217 voters,” said the CEC.
“In Gujarat, more than 4.9 crore electors will be served by the Election Commission of India. There are 4.6 lakhs first time voters,” said Mr. Kumar.
There will be over 51,000 polling stations in Gujarat for the upcoming elections. “For enhanced voting experience, 1,274 polling stations will be completely managed by women polling and security staff,” said the election commissioner.
The tenure of the 182-member Assembly in Gujarat is set to expire on February 18 next year.
Here’s a look at the key dates for Assembly polls in Gujarat:
Issue of notification: November 5 and November 10 for Phase 1 and Phase 2 respectively
Last Date of making nominations: November 14 and November 17 for Phase 1 and Phase 2 respectively
Scrutiny of nominations: November 15 and November 19 for Phase 1 and Phase 2 respectively
Last date for withdrawal of candidatures: November 17 and November 21 for Phase 1 and Phase 2 respectively
Date of poll: December 1 and December 5 for Phase 1 and Phase 2 respectively
Counting of votes: December 8
End of process: December 10
ECI focussing on inclusion of third-gender voters: CEC Rajiv Kumar
“Since 2017, there has been a 100% increase in transgender voters in Gujarat. There are 1,417 third-gender voters in the State. We’re also trying to have a reach in certain red-light areas,” he said
Previous poll results
Gujarat has a 182-member Assembly and the BJP had pulled off its sixth consecutive victory winning 99 seats in the last polls, while the Congress put up a spirited fight by bagging 77 seats. In percentage terms, the BJP had polled 49.05% of the valid votes, while Congress had polled 42.97%.
The Congress witnessed a series of defections after the assembly elections and the BJP increased its tally in the House to 111. The Congress numbers were reduced to 62.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has trained its sights on Gujarat and has already entered the election mode. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has made several trips to Gujarat in his bid to make inroads for the AAP in the State after a successful foray in Punjab.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also been visiting Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh frequently to inaugurate and launch several projects.
Also, these elections along with a few more in other states in 2023 are being seen as crucial in the run up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections when PM Modi and BJP will bid for their third consecutive government at the Centre.
With inputs from PTI
