The State Election Commission (SEC) released the timetable for the upcoming Panchayat Elections today.
State Election Commissioner Aditya Prasad Padhi told reporters that the three-tier elections will take place in five phases on February 16, 18, 20, 22, and 24. From 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., people can exercise their franchise. On the 26th, 27th, and 28th of February, votes will be counted at the Block, Sadar level.
The poll notification will be sent out on January 13th. The final candidate list will be released on January 25. Candidates will submit their nominations between February 17 and February 21, with the papers being scrutinised on February 22. The deadline for withdrawing nomination papers is February 25, according to the SEC.
Those who file fake affidavits in their nominations will face legal consequences. In light of the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, rallies and public meetings will be prohibited. He went on to say that only digital and virtual campaigning will be permitted.
“Only five people will be allowed to participate in a door-to-door campaign. There will be no victory processes permitted. Only persons who have been vaccinated and tested negative for COVID-19 will be allowed inside counting centers,” he stressed.
Elections for Naib Sarpanch will be placed on March 11, Panchayat Samiti Chairman on March 12, and Zilla Parishad Chairman on March 13, according to the official.
The SEC had called an all-party conference earlier in the day to discuss the impending elections.
With the announcement of the date, the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) for political parties and candidates went into effect immediately and will remain in effect until the state elections are completed.
The elections will be held in 91,913 wards under 6,794 panchayats in 29 of the state’s 30 districts. In 2017, elections were held in 6,801 general practices.
This season, the polls will not be held in seven GPs because they have been incorporated into NACs. Four of the seven GPs are from Balasore’s Remuna, two from Nayagarh’s Odanga, and one from Bargarh’s Bijepur.
However, in light of the current COVID-19 situation, officials from the opposition BJP and Congress have requested a three-month postponement of the elections.