Seven states will vote in the phase.
New Delhi:
Continuing with the count from the last Lok Sabha elections, this year’s polls, which will begin on April 19 and end on June 1, will be held in seven phases. Phase six will be held on May 25, and all seven seats of Delhi and all 10 in Haryana will be among the 57 seats that will vote that day.
A total of seven states will vote on May 25, including the crucial battlegrounds of Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Bihar. While these three states are voting in every phase, a significant chunk of seats from each of these are going to the polls in the sixth round. These include eight of Bihar’s 40 seats, 14 of Uttar Pradesh’s 80, and eight of West Bengal’s 42.
Six constituencies in Odisha and four in Jharkhand make up the remaining seats voting in this phase. These states are also voting in four phases, beginning May 13.
Schedule for General Elections to Lok Sabha 2024
Phase 6#GeneralElections2024#MCCpic.twitter.com/lZqkiDqr9L
— Election Commission of India (@ECISVEEP) March 16, 2024
The BJP had swept all seven seats in Delhi and all 10 in Haryana in 2019, but faces a stiffer challenge this time because INDIA allies Congress and AAP have agreed on seat sharing and will be contesting the election together.
The AAP will contest four seats in Delhi and one in Haryana, while the Congress will put up candidates for the rest.
In Delhi, the BJP has named its candidates for all seven seats and AAP has named its contenders for the four it is fighting, but the Congress is yet to make an announcement for its share of three. The BJP has decided to repeat only one of its seven MPs, Manoj Tiwari. The MPs that were dropped include Union Minister Meenakshi Lekhi and controversial figures Ramesh Bidhuri and Parvesh Verma.
The BJP has also named six candidates for Haryana and the AAP has declared its contender for the lone seat of Kurukshetra. The Congress is yet to announce any names for the state.
Just ahead of the polls, the BJP effected a major change in Haryana, replacing chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar with Nayab Singh Saini. Mr Khattar will now contest the Lok Sabha election from Karnal. The party has also dropped its ally, the Jannayak Janata Party.
The last date for filing nominations is May 6, and May 9 is the last day for withdrawal of candidature. The counting for all seats will take place on June 4.