The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday announced the schedule for biennial elections to four long-vacant Rajya Sabha seats from the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir
Srinagar
According to the ECI, the formal notification will be issued on October 6, with the last date for filing nominations fixed for October 13. Scrutiny of papers will take place on October 14, and candidates can withdraw their nominations until October 16. Polling will be held on October 24 between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., and counting will begin the same day at 5 p.m.
The four Upper House seats have remained vacant since February 2021 following the retirement of PDP members Mir Mohammad Fayaz and Nazir Ahmed Laway, BJP’s Shamsher Singh, and former Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad. Elections were delayed as Jammu and Kashmir lacked a Legislative Assembly after the 2019 abrogation of Article 370 and the state’s bifurcation into two Union Territories. Assembly polls were finally conducted last year, creating the Electoral College required to fill the Rajya Sabha vacancies.
The ECI said the vacancies will be filled through three separate biennial elections, as two of the seats fall under different retirement categories. It also noted that the tenure of the elected members will remain subject to a Supreme Court case related to the conduct of such polls. Observers will be appointed to ensure a free and fair election process.