Assembly Elections: 5 States to Vote in 7 Phases From 10 Feb, Results on 10 Mar

The states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa, Manipur, and Uttarakhand are set to go to polls.

The ECI is also likely to announce the COVID-19 procols that will be followed.

(Photo: The Quint)

The Election Commission of India announced the dates for Assembly polls in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Goa, Manipur, and Uttarakhand on Saturday, 8 January.

The 2022 state Assembly elections will begin with the first phase of voting in Uttar Pradesh on 10 February and will end on 7 March with the seventh and last phase of the polling in the state. The counting of votes in all states will be held on 10 March.

With the announcement of the dates, the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) has come into force, the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) said.

Elections in Uttar Pradesh will be conducted in seven phases, starting from 10 February and ending on 7 March. Goa, Punjab and Uttarakhand will go to polls in one phase on 14 February, while Manipur will go to polls in two phases on 27 February and 3 March.

Election schedule.

The current term of the UP Assembly ends in May, while the terms of remaining four state assemblies are ending in March.

Uttar Pradesh

Phases: 7

Dates: 10 February, 14 February, 20 February, 23 February, 27 February, 3 March, 7 March

Election schedule.

Punjab

Phases: 1

Date: 14 February

Election schedule.

Goa

Phases: 1

Dates: 14 February

Election schedule.

Manipur

Phases: 2

Dates: 27 February, 3 March

Election schedule.

Uttarakhand

Phases: 1

Dates: 14 February

Election schedule.

A total of 18.34 crore electors including service voters will take part in this election out of which 8.55 crore are women electors, the CEC said.

"The ECI has mandated that at least one polling station managed exclusively by women shall be set up in every Assembly constituency, " he added.

The CEC said that it will be mandatory for parties to upload the all the details about, including criminal records, of the candidates on their website.

"Political parties will have to give reasons about why candidates with criminal history have been given tickets," he said.

Elections to be held for 403 assembly seats in UP, 117 in Punjab, 70 in Uttarakhand, 60 in Manipur and 40 in Goa, the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sushil Chandra said. Chandra informed that there will be 24.9 lakh first-time electors in the five states.

The CEC also laid down the various COVID-19 procols that will be followed as India is witnessing a huge rise in cases due to the Omicron variant.

"All election officials and employees will be considered as frontline workers and all eligible officers will be vaccinated with 'precautionary dose'," the CEC said.

The CEC also announced that no physical rally, roadshows, padayatra of any kind will be allowed till 15 January in all poll-bound states.

The current term of the UP assembly is going to end in May, the remaining four state assemblies are ending on different dates in March.

COVID-19 Protocols to be in Place

The body had met with Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan, AIIMS Director, Dr Randeep Guleria, and ICMR chief Dr Balram Bhargava, on Thursday, to review the current COVID-19 situation in the poll-bound states.

Several political parties have already announced cancellation of political rallies and are focusing more on digital campaigns in the wake of the unabated surge.

The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sushil Chandra had on 31 December 2021 said that all political parties in Uttar Pradesh had agreed to go ahead with the elections with COVID-19 protocols.

“All parties told us elections should be held on time following COVID-19 protocol,” Chandra said at a press conferrence.

The CEC had also announced that voting time was going to be extended by one hour in the state - from 8 AM to 6 PM to cater to social distancing norms. More booths would also be added to avoid crowding. The poll body also stressed on increasing the pace of vaccination and ensuring that the poll workers were fully vaccinated.