The Election Commission (EC) has announced the schedule for Assembly elections for Maharashtra and Jharkhand. The state elections in Maharashtra will be held in a single phase on November 20. The counting of votes is to be done on November 23. Jharkhand Assembly elections will be held in two phases - November 13 and November 20. The result will be announced on November 23.
Maharashtra has 288 Assembly seats, while Jharkhand will poll for its 81-member Assembly. The Maharashtra Assembly’s term is set to conclude on November 26, while the Jharkhand Assembly’s term will end on January 5, 2025. "There are 9.63 crore eligible voters in Maharashtra, while the number of eligible voters in Jharkhand is 2.6 crore," Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said at a press conference in Delhi. Kumar said elections will be held in both the states on Wednesdays to address the problem of urban apathy.
The BJP is keen to retain power in Maharashtra along with allies Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and the NCP led by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. The BJP led Mahayuti alliance is facing a challenge from the Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition of the Congress-NCPSP-Shiv SenaUBT, which hopes to repeat its performance in the Lok Sabha elections.
The opposition MVA alliance won 31 of the 48 seats in Maharashtra in the Lok Sabha elections. In Jharkhand, the Congress is playing second fiddle to the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) led by Chief Minister Hemant Soren, while the BJP is looking to make a comeback.
Bypolls in 48 assembly seats and two Lok Sabha seats
Bypolls will also be held in 48 assembly seats and two Lok Sabha seats, the CEC said. Bye-elections to 47 assembly seats and the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat, vacated by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, will be held on November 13.
Bypolls to the Kedarnath assembly seat in Uttarakhand and the Nanded Lok Sabha seat in Maharashtra will be held on November 20. Bypolls to the Basirhat Lok Sabha seat in West Bengal and Milkipur in Uttar Pradesh were not announced as election petitions are pending for the two seats.
(With inputs from PTI)
