New Delhi: Election Commission of India (ECI) said polling for 55 Rajya Sabha seats spread over 17 States set to be vacated in April will be conducted on 26 March.
Announcing to schedule, ECI said in a statement: “Term of office of 55 members of Rajya Sabha elected from 17 States is due to expire on their retirement in April 2020.”
According to the schedule for elections, Notification would be issued on 6th March, the last date of filing of nominations would be 13th March and polling would be on 26th March, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Votes would be counted at 5 p.m. on the same day.
Prominent among those retiring are Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh (JD-U), Union minister Ramdas Athawale (RPI-Athawale), Congress veteran Motilal Vora, former union ministers Vijay Goel (BJP) and Kumari Selja (Cong), and former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Digvijay Singh.
While seven vacancies are from Maharashtra, six are from Tamil Nadu, followed by five from West Bengal and Bihar, four each from Odisha, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh, three each from Assam, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, two each from Telangana, Chhattisgarh, Haryana and Jharkhand, one each from Himachal Pradesh, Manipur and Meghalaya. Ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and opposition Congress are expected to win most of the seats in elections, but two will also see their strength diminished marginally.
Trinamool Congress and YSR Congress Party are expected to make significant gains in the 245-member Upper House after 26th March elections.
