ECI to Unveil Poll Schedule for Four States, Puducherry Today

New Delhi: The Election Commission of India will announce the schedule for the upcoming Legislative Assembly elections in four states and one Union Territory later on Sunday.

The poll panel will reveal the election timetable for Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Kerala, Assam and the Union Territory of Puducherry at a press conference scheduled to be held in New Delhi at 4 pm.

With the announcement of the election schedule, the Model Code of Conduct will immediately come into force in all poll-bound states.

The election timetable, including the dates for issue of notification, filing of nominations, scrutiny, withdrawal of candidatures, polling and counting of votes, will be announced by the commission led by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar along with Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi.

The terms of the existing legislative assemblies in these states are set to expire on different dates in May and June. Ahead of the polls, the final electoral rolls for the four states and Puducherry have already been published following the Special Intensive Revision of the voters’ list.

In Assam, the election is expected to witness a direct contest between the ruling BJP-led alliance and the Congress. The BJP, led by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, currently heads the NDA government in the state, while the Congress campaign is being led by Lok Sabha MP Gaurav Gogoi.

At present, the BJP-led NDA holds 86 seats in the 126-member Assam Assembly, while the Congress has 22 seats. The opposition party faces a significant challenge in attempting to cross the majority mark of 64 seats.

The tenure of the 15th Assam Legislative Assembly is scheduled to end before May 23.

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