The Election Commission on Tuesday, 24 March, announced that it has deferred the Rajya Sabha polls scheduled for 26 March in view of the coronavirus outbreak.
EC spokesperson Sheyphali Sharan announced the deferment, saying that a fresh date for the polls would be announced later.
Election to fill up 55 seats in the Upper House of Parliament was slated for 26 March, but 37 candidates have already been elected without a contest, the notification said.
The decision to hold the election for the remaining 18 seats will be taken based on the prevailing situation, PTI reported, quoting sources.
Nearly 500 coronavirus cases have been reported in India so far, according to Health Ministry data on Tuesday.
As cases of the viral infection surged, authorities have put almost the entire country under lockdown, banning gathering of people and suspending road, rail and air traffic till 31 March.
(With inputs from PTI.)
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