ECI announced biennial elections to 11 Rajya Sabha seats across two states.
West Bengal will separately hold a by-election following Rukmini Mallik’s resignation.
Rajya Sabha polling, if required, will take place on October 16.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Tuesday announced biennial elections to 11 Rajya Sabha seats, 10 from Uttar Pradesh and one from Uttarakhand, and a by-election to one seat from West Bengal. Polling will take place on October 16.
Nine of the Uttar Pradesh seats will become vacant when the sitting members’ terms end on November 25. They include seats held by Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav, Union ministers Hardeep Singh Puri and Banwari Lal Verma, the BJP’s Arun Singh, Geeta Shakya, Neeraj Shekhar, Brij Lal and Seema Dwivedi, and the BSP’s Ramji Gautam. The state’s tenth seat, previously held by BJP leader Dinesh Sharma, fell vacant on September 11.
In Uttarakhand, BJP MP Naresh Bansal’s term will also end on November 25. The West Bengal by-election follows the July 16 resignation of Trinamool Congress MP Rukmini Mallik.
The ECI will issue notifications for the Rajya Sabha elections on September 29. The last date for filing nominations is October 6, followed by scrutiny on October 7 and the deadline for withdrawals on October 9. Polling will take place on October 16 from 9am to 4pm, with counting beginning at 5 pm. The election process must be completed by October 19.
The commission said voters must mark their preferences using only the violet sketch pens supplied by the returning officer. It also said it would appoint observers to monitor the elections.
Separately, the ECI announced elections to 28 Legislative Council seats from Graduates’ and Teachers’ constituencies across four states. These comprise eight seats in Bihar, four in Karnataka, five in Maharashtra and 11 in Uttar Pradesh.
Nominations for the Legislative Council polls close on October 6. Scrutiny will take place on October 7, and candidates may withdraw until October 9. Polling is scheduled for October 23 from 8 am to 4 pm, with counting on October 27. The process is to be completed by October 31.
