Lucknow, Oct 15 (IANS): The Election Commission has announced by-elections for nine out of ten Assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh. The polling will take place on November 13, and the results will be declared on November 23, along with the results of the Maharashtra and Jharkhand Assembly elections.
No voting will take place for the Milkipur seat in Ayodhya due to a pending legal case.
The contest is primarily seen as a showdown between the BJP and the Samajwadi Party (SP).
The Milkipur by-election is delayed due to a petition filed in the High Court by former MLA Gorakhnath Baba, challenging the 2022 election result in which SP's Awadhesh Prasad emerged victorious. Baba's petition questions the validity of Prasad's nomination, as his notary's license had been cancelled five years prior. With the court yet to deliver a verdict, the election date for Milkipur remains unannounced. The Milkipur seat fell vacant after SP leader Awadhesh Prasad was elected to Lok Sabha from Ayodhya seat.
The nine seats where by-elections will be held include Sisamau (Kanpur), Phulpur (Prayagraj), Karhal (Mainpuri), Majhawan (Mirzapur), Katehari (Ambedkar Nagar), Ghaziabad Sadar, Khair (Aligarh), Kundarki (Moradabad), and Meerapur (Muzaffarnagar).
In Karhal, elections are held after SP chief Akhilesh Yadav vacated the seat following his election as an MP from Kannauj. SP has fielded Tej Pratap, a member of the Mulayam Singh family, to contest the seat. Other seats became vacant due to MLAs becoming MPs, disqualification and resignation.
The Phulpur assembly seat of Prayagraj became vacant after BJP's Praveen Patel was elected as MP. Similarly, elections are being held on Khair assembly constituency after Minister Anoop Pradhan became MP.
The SP has already announced candidates for six of the nine seats, with Tej Pratap contesting from Karhal and Naseem Solanki, wife of former MLA Irfan Solanki, standing for the Sisamau seat.
Meanwhile, BSP chief Mayawati has confirmed her party will contest the by-elections alone, with no alliance with any political party.
In a statement on social media, Mayawati reiterated her commitment to contesting alone, stating the need for elections to be free from money and muscle power. She also called upon BSP workers to mobilise and uphold the ideals of B.R. Ambedkar.
The election notification will be issued on October 18, with the last date for nominations set for October 25. Scrutiny of nominations will be completed by October 28, and candidates can withdraw their candidature until October 30. Voting will take place on November 13, with counting scheduled for November 23.
Additional Chief Electoral Officer Chandrashekhar confirmed that the Model Code of Conduct is now in effect in the districts where by-elections are taking place.