NEW DELHI, Nov 5: By-elections to one Lok Sabha and five state Assembly constituencies in as many states will also be held along with the second phase of Gujarat elections on December 5, the Election Commission of India announced on Saturday.
Among the seats going for the bypolls is the Mainpuri parliamentary constituency in Uttar Pradesh which fell vacant due to the death on October 10 of the Samajwadi party founder Mulayam Sigh Yadav. An assembly seat in UP going to the bypolls is also a Samajwadi Party stronghold – Rampur – which fell vacant after its incumbent MLA Azam Khan’s membership of the State assembly was cancelled following his conviction in a hate speech case and sentencing for three years on October 28.
The four other assembly seats going to the bypolls included Odisha’s Padampur, Rajasthan’s Sardarshahar, Bihar’s Kurhani and Chhatisgarh’s Bhanupratappur.
The counting of votes for the Mainpuri and the five Assembly by-elections will be taken up along with the counting of votes in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat on December 8. Himachal is going for single phase state Assembly polling on November 12.
The ECI said the Model Code of Conduct would come into force with immediate effect in the districts in which the by-lections are going to be conducted.
(Manas Dasgupta)