With curiousity increasing over the dates for the Lok Sabha elections due this year, sources indicate that the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) top brass is heading to states for final checks and is likely to announce the poll schedule after March 9.
The Lok Sabha or general elections to elect the members of the 18th Lok Sabha in India are expected to take place in April and May.
As part of preparations for Lok Sabha elections 2024 and simultaneous assembly polls in a, a team of officials from ECI is undertaking back-to-back visits to states, a news18.com report mentioned.
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As per sources cited in the report, ECI representatives will be meeting government officials between March 8-9 to ask about the Jammu and Kashmir security situation and the availability of forces.
The EC team will also be visiting Jammu and Kashmir on March 12-13 to assess the ground situation to see if Assembly polls in the UT can be conducted with Lok Sabha polls. “The all will depend on the availability of forces,” the report quoted sources as saying.
In 2019, the Lok Sabha election schedule was announced on March 10. Polling was done in seven phases between April 11 and May 19 while the counting of votes took place on May 23.
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Lok Sabha Election From April 16?
Last month, an internal note circulated by the office of Delhi's Chief Electoral Officer mentioning April 16 as the tentative "poll date" for Lok Sabha elections sparked massive speculation, prompting the officer to later issue a clarification over the same.
In a letter on January 19, assistant chief electoral officer T Misao asked asked district officials to stick to the schedule, pointing that the Election Commission (EC) of India’s Planner had listed April 16 as the poll date to calculate the timelines for various tasks.
The circular created a flutter about the possible schedule of the upcoming polls. This led to Chief Electoral Officer's office issuing a clarification that the date was mentioned only for "reference" for officials to plan activities in accordance with the Election Planner issued by the poll panel.
"Some media queries are coming referring to a circular by @CeodelhiOffice to clarify whether April 16 is tentative poll day for Lok Sabha elections. It is clarified that this date was mentioned only for 'reference' for officials to plan activities as per Election Planner of ECI," the CEO office posted on X.
