E-Paper
Uttar Pradesh bypolls today, multi-corner contests to decide fate of 88 candidates
Polling will begin at 7 am and continue till 6 pm. The personnel on duty will be equipped with protective gear, thermal scanners, face shields, personal protective equipment (PPE) kits, gloves and sanitisers.
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The multi-corner contests in the by-elections to seven assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh will be held on Tuesday (November 3) amid directives from the Election Commission of India (ECI) to strictly implement the Covid-19 guidelines during voting.
The state’s chief electoral officer Ajay Kumar Shukla said that 24.34 lakh voters, including 13.03 lakh men, 11.30 lakh women and 130 transgenders, will decide the fate of 88 candidates, including nine women, in the bypolls.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Samajwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Congress have fielded candidates in all the seven constituencies - Naugawan Sadat (Amroha), Bulandshahr, Tundla (Firozabad), Bangarmau (Unnao), Ghatampur (Kanpur), Deoria and Malhani (Jaunpur). Though the campaigning ended on Sunday, the leaders of various political parties held press conferences and released press statements to woo the voters on Monday.
Shukla said that the ECI has made elaborate arrangements to ensure the polling remains impartial and peaceful.
Polling will begin at 7 am and continue till 6 pm. The personnel on duty will be equipped with protective gear, thermal scanners, face shields, personal protective equipment (PPE) kits, gloves and sanitisers, said Shukla.
The voters will undergo thermal scanning and a voter guide will be distributed at the polling stations on the dos and don’ts in view of the Covid-19 pandemic, he added.
The ECI has set up 3,655 polling stations and 1,755 polling centres in the seven assembly segments. In view of the coronavirus disease pandemic, a maximum of 1,000 voters will be allowed at a polling station.
In all, 5,127 EVM (electronic voting machine) control units, 6,710 EVM ballot units and 5,492 VVPAT (voter verified paper audit trail) machines will be used in the polling.
The poll panel has deployed central paramilitary forces, appointed seven general observers, seven expenditure observers, 310 sector magistrates, 46 zonal magistrates, 76 static magistrates, 333 micro-observers for conducting peaceful and impartial polling, Shukla said.
It will also conduct webcasting of polling at 371 critical booths in the seven assembly constituencies, said the returning officer.
The highest number of candidates, 18, are in fray in Bulandshahar, 16 in Malhani, 14 each in Deoria and Naugawan Sadat, 10 each in Tundla and Bangarmau and six in Ghatampur.
The Naugawan Sadat, Ghatampur, Bulandshahar, Deoria and Malhani seats fell vacant after the death of sitting MLAs Chetan Chauhan, Kamal Rani Varun, Virendra Singh Sirohi, Janmejai Singh and Prasanath Yadav respectively.
Bangarmau assembly seat in Unnao district fell vacant after the disqualification of the then sitting MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar following his conviction in a rape case on December 20, 2019.
While six of these seats were held by the BJP, the SP bagged one seat in the 2017 assembly election.
