Jammu, Oct 06: The Election Commission of India (ECI) announced the much awaited assembly bypolls in two constituencies— Budham and Nagrota—in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday. Both Budgam and Nagrota seats have been vacant since October 2024.
The Budgam seat fell vacant immediately after the 2024 assembly elections when Chief Minister Omar Abdullah chose to retain the Ganderbal constituency. The seat has been vacant since October 21, 2024. Menwile, the Nagrota seat, on the other hand, fell vacant on October 31, 2024, after the death of BJP MLA Devender Singh Rana.
The voting for Assembly bypolls in eight constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir, Odisha, Jharkhand, Mizoram, Punjab, Telangana and Rajasthan will be held on November 11, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar announced on Monday.
The counting of votes will be done on November 14.
“The Assembly bypolls in Jammu and Kashmir, Odisha, Jharkhand, Mizoram, Punjab, Telangana and Rajasthan will be held on November 11; the counting of votes will be done on November 14,” Kumar said at a press conference here.
Two assembly constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir — Budgam and Nagrota — have been vacant since October 2024.
Budgam was rendered vacant immediately after the 2024 assembly elections when Chief Minister Omar Abdullah chose to retain the Ganderbal constituency. The seat has been vacant since October 21, 2024.
Nagrota, on the other hand, fell vacant on October 31, 2024, after the death of MLA Devender Singh Rana.
The bypoll in Rajasthan’s Anta was necessitated after BJP MLA Kanwarlal was disqualified in May after being convicted in a gun threat case.
In Telangana’s Jubilee Hill constituency, the bypoll was necessitated following the death of BRS MLA Maganti Gopinath in June this year following a heart attack.
The Dampa assembly seat in Mizoram fell vacant after the death of incumbent MNF legislator Lalrintluanga Sailo on July 21.
The byelection to the Nuapada assembly constituency in Odisha was necessitated due to the death of sitting MLA Rajendra Dholakia on September 8 due to health-related issues.
In Jharkhand’s Ghatsila constituency, the bypoll is being held after the seat fell vacant following the death of Ramdas Soren.
The Tarn Taran assembly seat in Punjab also fell vacant after the death of Kashmir Singh Sohal.
While Nagrota is likely to witness a direct contest between the BJP and the ruling alliance, the Budgam seat is gearing up for a triangular fight between the National Conference (NC), the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and the People’s Alliance for Change (PAC).
The BJP is expected to field Devyani Rana, daughter of the late BJP leader Devender Singh Rana, who had won the Nagrota seat twice.
In Budgam, the National Conference is expected to field either Nasir Aslam Wani or Aga Mehmood.
The Budgam seat fell vacant after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah vacated it and retained the Ganderbal seat, having won both constituencies in last year’s Assembly elections.
The Nagrota seat became vacant following the death of BJP leader Devender Singh Rana on October 31 last year, just a few weeks after the Assembly election results were declared in Jammu & Kashmir.
Meanwhile, The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday announced that it will contest the upcoming assembly byelections in Budgam and Nagrota constituencies of Jammu and Kashmir.
Bypolls to both Budgam and Nagrota assembly constituencies will be held on November 11 while counting of votes will be undertaken on November 14.
Budgam fell vacant immediately after the 2024 assembly elections when Chief Minister Omar Abdullah chose to retain the Ganderbal constituency. The seat has been vacant since October 21, 2024.
Nagrota, on the other hand, fell vacant on October 31, 2024, after the death of BJP MLA Devender Singh Rana.
After meeting AAP J-K unit president and sitting MLA Mehraj Malik in Kathua jail, party spokesperson Appu Singh Slathia conveyed several messages, including the decision to fight the upcoming bypolls in the two assembly segments.
Quoting Malik, she said the election will be contested on both seats with “truth and commitment”.
Malik was detained on September 8 under the stringent Public Safety Act, 1978 (PSA) and is presently lodged in Kathua district jail.
The PSA empowers the government to notify an order preventing the entry of unauthorised persons to a prohibited place. It prohibits any person from entering or loitering in the vicinity of any prohibited place without the permission of the government or the authority specified by it.
Slathia, who is also part of the legal team fighting Malik’s detention case in the high court, said he requested party leaders and workers to continue their work with single-minded focus to serve the people.
