Speed Post News Network
New Delhi : The Election Commission of India (ECI) on February 23, 2018, announced that biennial polls to 59 Rajya Sabha seats will be held on March 23, 2018, and counting of votes would take place the same evening. The notification concerned will be issued on March 5, 2018, and the last date of filing nominations is March 12.
The Election Commission of India has decided to hold biennial election to 16 States and a by-election to the Council of States from Kerala. Altogether 58 Rajya Sabha seats will be falling vacant in April -May, 2018, while a by-poll to fill a seat from Kerala will also be held on the same day. Veerendra Kumar, MP, had resigned in December 20, 2017, though his term was to end on April 2, 2022. The BJP’s strength in the Upper House is expected to rise after the biennial elections to the Rajya Sabha.
The members, whose terms are ending include Union ministers Arun Jaitley, Ravi Shankar Prasad, Dharmendra Pradhan, J P Nadda, Thaawar Chand Gehlot and Ramdas Athawale. Ten Rajya Sabha Members are retiring from UP, six each from Bihar and from Maharashtra, five each from West Bengal and MP, four each from Gujarat and Karnataka, and three each from Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Rajasthan, two from Jharkhand, and one each from Uttrakhand, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana.
The Commission has directed that for the purpose of marking preference(s) on the ballot paper only integrated violet colour sketch pen(s) of pre-fixed specification provided by the Returning Officer shall be used, according to a PIB release.