Every candidate needs 10 proposers to file papers
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Oct 6: The Election Commission of India (ECI) today set the process in motion for filling up four Rajya Sabha vacancies from Jammu and Kashmir after four and half years with issuance of three separate notifications for the elections scheduled to be held on October 24.
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Legislative Assembly Secretary Manoj Kumar Pandit, who has been appointed as Returning Officer for the elections, issued three notifications including two for elections to one seat each and one for election to two seats.
The election for which 88 MLAs of the Legislative Assembly are eligible to cast their votes will be held in the Legislative Assembly complex in Srinagar. Significantly, the election will be held during the Assembly session which has been convened from October 23.
Candidates can file their nomination papers till October 13 while scrutiny of documents will take place in the office of the Returning Officer at 11 AM on October 14. The candidates can withdraw their nomination papers till October 16. The election, if required, will be held on October 24 from 9 AM to 4 PM followed by counting from 5 PM.
The ECI has reiterated that all forms and submission procedures must adhere to the timelines specified, and candidates or their authorized agents are responsible for delivering the papers within the prescribed schedule.
Every candidate even those belonging to recognized national or political parties will be required to submit a list of 10 MLAs proposing their name for the election along with mandate given by their party. The nomination submitted without 10 proposers will be rejected, the officials said.
Apart from National Conference-led alliance which comprised the Congress and smaller parties like CPM and Independents, only BJP has more than 10 MLAs to field their candidates. Click here to watch video
In fact, NC and BJP are the only two parties which have double digit representation in the Legislative Assembly. In 90-seat Assembly, there are two vacancies leaving 88 eligible voters including 41 from NC, 28 BJP, Congress six, PDP three, People’s Conference, CPM and AAP one each and Independents 7. AAP MLA Mehraj Malik (Doda) has been detained under the Public Safety Act (PSA).
NC with its allies has the support of 52 to 53 MLAs.
Four MPs were elected to the Rajya Sabha in February 2015 when the last elections were held to the House of Elders from Jammu and Kashmir. They included then Congress leader and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad (now DPAP chairman), Shamsher Singh Manhas (BJP), who has since passed away; and Nazir Ahmed Laway and Mir Mohammad Fayaz (both from PDP). Fayaz is the sitting PDP MLA.
J&K Assembly has strength of 90 elected MLAs plus five nominated. Five MLAs haven’t been nominated so far. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah quit Budgam seat while retaining Ganderbal after winning from both constituencies while BJP stalwart Devender Singh Rana passed away within days after his re-election from Nagrota.
NC-led alliance will safely win three seats while the BJP is poised to get one. The BJP can get the seat on third notification where election will be held for two seats.
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