Jaipur, Aug 19 (IANS) The wait for local body polls in Rajasthan is over. The State Election Commission on Wednesday announced the schedule for municipal polls across the state, which will be conducted in two phases on September 9 and 11.

With the announcement, the Model Code of Conduct has come into force with immediate effect in the urban local body areas concerned.

According to the State Election Commission, voting for the first phase of municipal polls will take place on September 9, while the second phase will be held on September 11 and the results will be declared on September 14.

State Election Commissioner Rajeshwar Singh said elections will be held for 10,245 councilor posts across 309 urban local bodies in Rajasthan. These include 10 municipal corporations, 51 municipal councils and 248 municipalities. The nomination process will begin on August 27 with the issuance of the election notification.

Candidates can file their nominations until August 31. The nomination papers will then be scrutinised, while the deadline for withdrawal of nominations is September 3. Voting for the two phases will subsequently be held on September 9 and 11, followed by the declaration of results on September 14. After the councilor elections, the process for electing the heads of the urban local bodies will begin.

According to the schedule, elections for mayors, chairpersons and municipal presidents will be held on September 21.

Polls for the corresponding vice-president and deputy posts will take place on September 22.

The general meetings of the municipal corporations, municipal councils and municipalities will also be held on September 22, during which the respective deputy mayor, deputy chairman and vice-chairperson will be elected.

The Model Code of Conduct has come into force across all 309 urban local bodies following the announcement of the poll schedule. It will remain applicable until the election process is completed. During this period, election-related guidelines will apply to administrative decisions, new announcements and development works that could influence voters in the concerned municipal areas.

Ahead of the elections, the Autonomous Government Department completed the reservation and delimitation process for the urban local bodies and submitted its detailed report to the State Election Commission.

The Commission finalised the poll schedule after completing the required technical and legal review.

With the schedule now announced, political activities are expected to gain momentum in Rajasthan’s municipal corporations, municipal councils and municipalities.

Political parties and prospective candidates will now begin the final preparations for the elections and step up campaigning.

–IANS

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