Bhubaneshwar, Oct 13 (IANS) The Election Commission of India on Monday issued the Gazette Notification for the bypolls to the Nuapada Assembly constituency, which outlines the election schedule.

According to the notification, the Nuapada seat fell vacant following the sudden demise of Rajendra Dholakia, former minister and veteran BJD leader, on September 8.

With the issuance of the gazette notification, the process of filing nominations will begin on Monday.

Candidates can submit their nominations until October 20, which is the last date for filing.

Scrutiny of nominations will be conducted on October 22, and candidates can withdraw their candidature by October 24.

The bye-election for the Nuapada seat is scheduled to be held on November 11, while the counting of votes will take place on November 14.

The Election Commission of India has announced that the entire election process will be completed by November 16.

As per the notification, voting will start at 7 a.m. and continue till 5 p.m. at all polling booths, except at 47 booths located in Naxal-affected areas, where the voting will end at 4 p.m.

Earlier, Odisha’s Chief Electoral Officer R.S. Gopalan announced that a total of 358 polling stations — including 56 new ones — will be set up in the Nuapada constituency for the upcoming by-election.

He also stated that no polling station will have more than 1,200 voters. Gopalan confirmed that there are adequate EVMs and VVPAT machines available for the by-election in the Nuapada Assembly constituency.

He further asserted that the publication of candidates’ past criminal records in newspapers and on television channels, on three occasions during the campaign period, is mandatory for both independent candidates and political parties.

Additionally, webcasting will be conducted at all polling booths to ensure transparency.

It is worth noting that both the ruling BJP and the main opposition BJD are yet to announce their candidates for the bypoll.

Meanwhile, the Congress has named veteran tribal leader Balabhadra Majhi as its candidate for the Nuapada bye-election scheduled for November 11.

–IANS

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