EC Announces Poll Dates: Voting In Kerala, Assam, Puducherry On April 9, WB To Vote In 2 Phases; Results on May 4 (WATCH)

Elections to Assam, Kerala and Puducherry will be held in a single phase on April 9, while West Bengal and Tamil Nadu will go to the polls from April 23. Bengal, in fact, will see a two-phase election, with the second being scheduled on April 29. Results for all the states will be declared on May 4.

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced the schedule of elections in poll-bound states and a Union Territory (UT) on Sunday. Assembly elections in Assam, Kerala and Puducherry will be held in a single phase on April 9, while West Bengal and Tamil Nadu will go to polls from April 23. Bengal, in fact, will see a two-phase election, with the second being scheduled on April 29. Results for all the states will be declared on May 4.

Special intensive revision of the voters' lists in these four states and one union territory has already been conducted, with final electoral rolls published.

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had on March 10 visited West Bengal to review poll preparedness in the state. They had also visited the other states which are heading into polls to review poll preparedness. 

The total number of seats in West Bengal Legislative Assembly is 294, with the main contest between the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). TMC, led by Mamata Banerjee, has been in power in the state since 2011. 

Assam will witness a fight between the incumbent BJP-led NDA government and Congress for 126 state assembly seats.

In Kerala, the main fight is between the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the United Democratic Front (UDF) for 140 seats. Meanwhile, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is also in the fray to compete against both alliances. BJP plans to contest around 100 seats in Kerala, while its allies Bharat Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS) and Twenty20 are expected to contest the remaining 40 seats as part of the alliance. 

For the 234 seats in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, political parties are ramping up their campaign activities and finalising seat-sharing arrangements within their respective alliances.

Puducherry will hold elections for all 30 constituencies of the 16th Puducherry Legislative Assembly. While the Congress is fighting the polls in an alliance with DMK and CPI, the opposition consisted of All India NR Congress, BJP and AIADMK.

The Election Commission of India reviewed poll preparedness for the upcoming Assembly elections in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam, and Pudducherry previously this month.

According to a release, the Election Commission appointed Central Observers under the plenary powers conferred on it by Article 324 of the Constitution and Section 20B of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, to assist the Commission in the conduct of free and fair polls. They also oversee the efficient and effective management of the electoral process at the field level.