The Election Commission, on Wednesday, rescheduled the date of polling for the Rajasthan assembly to November 25 from November 23, days after it announced the schedule for the election along with Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and Mizoram.
The decision was taken by the poll panel after it received representations from several political parties and social organizations, urging it to revise the date of poll.
In a communique, the EC said: “Representations have been received in the commission from various political parties, social organizations, and also issues raised in various media platforms for change of date of poll considering large-scale weddings/social engagements on that day, which may cause inconvenience to a large number of people, various logistic issues, and may lead to reduced voters’ participation during poll.”
“The commission, having considered these factors and representations, has decided to change the date of poll from November 23 to November 25,” the statement added.
According to the revised schedule, all the poll events will remain similar as announced earlier, excluding the voting date.
As per the schedule, the date of issue of gazette notification is October 30. The last date of filing nominations is November 6, and the scrutiny will take place on November 7.
The counting of votes for the 200-member Rajasthan assembly will take place on December 3 along with four other states.
The forthcoming poll is expected to witness a direct contest between the Congress and BJP in Rajasthan. The ruling Congress has exuded confidence that it will retain the power, while the BJP is hopeful that it will oust the ruling dispensation.
In other states, voting will be held in a single phase in Mizoram on November 7, Madhya Pradesh on November 17, and Telangana on November 30, while Chhattisgarh will witness a two-phase voting on November 7 and 17.