New Delhi:
Lok Sabha elections will begin on April 11 and continue for over a month till May 19 across seven phases, followed by counting of votes on May 23, the Election Commission announced Sunday, kick-starting a mega electoral battle where the BJP will pitch for a re-election of the Modi government amid the Opposition's efforts for a united fight to unseat it.
The polling will be held on April 11, April 18, April 23, April 29, May 6, May 12 and May 19 for 543 Lok Sabha seats across the country in which nearly 90 crore voters would be eligible to vote, Chief Election Commissioner Sunil Arora told a packed press conference here.
Assembly elections will also be held in Andhra Pradesh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and Odisha simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls, the CEC said.
However, elections for Jammu and Kashmir assembly have been deferred, the EC said citing security reasons.
Polling for parliamentary and assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal and Sikkim will be held in the first phase on April 11. Parliamentary and assembly polls will be held in Odisha across the first four phases.
Twenty-two states and union territories (UTs), including Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Telangana, will have Lok Sabha election in a single phase while it will be spread across seven phases in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal.
Karnataka, Manipur, Rajasthan and Tripura will have Lok Sabha election in two phases, while Assam and Chhattisgarh will have three-phase polling.
Four states – Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Odisha – will have elections in four phases. Jammu and Kashmir will have five-phase voting.
Here is the complete list of state-wise polling dates:
Andaman & Nicobar Islands – April 11
Andhra Pradesh – April 11
Arunachal Pradesh – April 11
Assam – April 11, April 12 and April 23
Bihar - April 11, April 18, April 23, April 29, May 6, May 12 and May 19
Chandigarh – May 19
Chhattisgarh – April 11, April 18, April 23
Dadra & Nagar Haveli – April 23
Daman & Diu – April 23
Delhi – May 12
Goa – April 23
Gujarat – April 23
Haryana – May 12
Himachal Pradesh – May 19
Jammu and Kashmir – April 11, April 18, April 23, April 29, May 6
Jharkhand – April 29 May 6, May 12 and May 19
Karnataka – April 18 and April 23
Kerala – April 23
Lakshadweep – April 11
Madhya Pradesh – April 29, May 6, May 12 and May 19
Maharashtra – April 11, April 18, April 23 and April 29
Manipur – April 11 and April 18
Meghalaya – April 11
Mizoram – April 11
Nagaland – April 11
Odisha – April 11, April 18, April 23 and April 29
Puducherry – April 18
Punjab – May 19
Rajasthan – April 29 and May 6
Sikkim – April 11
Tamil Nadu – April 18
Telangana – April 11
Tripura – April 11 and April 18
Uttar Pradesh – April 11, April 18, April 23, April 29 May 6, May 12 and May 19
Uttarakhand – April 11
West Bengal – April 11, April 18, April 23, April 29 May 6, May 12 and May 19
