Haryana BJP Chief Urges EC To Change Assembly Poll Date As Extended Holidays May Hit Voter Turnout

Mohan Lal Baroli, Haryana BJP chief has written to the ECI to change the date of Haryana Assembly elections apprehending a lower voter turnout since October 1 poll date coincides with a host of holidays scheduled in that period.

Chandigarh: Haryana BJP president Mohan Lal Baroli has urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to postpone the Assembly elections apprehending a lower voter turnout in view of the series of holidays coinciding with that period.

The ECI has announced that elections to the 90-member Haryana Assembly will be held on October 1 and the results will be declared on October 4.

In a letter which has been mailed to ECI, Baroli said that voting should be held after October 1 since there are holidays before and after this date. He wrote that there is a two-day holiday on September 28 (Saturday) and 29 (Sunday) since these are weekends. October 1 will be a holiday due to the elections. Then after the polling day, there are holidays on the consecutive two days. These days are on October 2 (Gandhi Jayanti) and October 3 (Agrasen Jayanti).

Baroli wrote that due to the extended holidays, the voting percentage may be affected and so urged commission to hold the polls a few days later.

Haryana State Election Officer Pankaj Aggarwal said that Baroli has e-mailed the ECI in this regard.

Haryana is slated to conduct elections in a single phase on October 1. The gazette notification will be issued on September 5 and the nomination process will start from the same day. The last date for nomination filing will be September 12. The nomination papers will be scrutinised on September 13 and the last date for withdrawal of candidature is September 16. Votes will be counted on October 4.

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