New Delhi , Jan 18 : The Election Commission of India (ECI) on January 18 (Wednesday) announced the schedule of assembly elections in Meghalaya Nagaland and Tripura .
The poll panel convened a press conference at 2.30 pm in New Delhi today.
The term of the three assemblies is ending on different dates in March. The three northeastern states are the first to have assembly polls this year.
The term and strength along with seats reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes of the Assembly Constituencies of Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura, as determined by the Delimitation of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies Order, 2008.
The Election Commission on Wednesday fixed February 16 as the date for the Tripura Assembly polls and February 27 for the elections to the Meghalaya and Nagaland assemblies, with the counting of votes scheduled for March 2.
Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar’s announcement at a press conference here marked the official start of the first round of Assembly polls in the new year, in which nine states are headed for elections, deemed crucial in the run-up to the all-important Lok Sabha contest in 2024.
The three poll-bound northeastern states may be small in terms of their electoral size but hold larger political significance. While the BJP is pulling out all the stops to retain power in Tripura and expand its footprints in the two other states, the Congress and the Left are trying to recapture their lost influence.
