Rural poll: Filing of nomination papers begins today in Amritsar

The election process for 24 Zila Parishad zones and 195 zones of 10 Panchayat Samitis will begin on December 1, when candidates can start filing their nominations. District Election Officer-cum-Deputy Commissioner Dalvinderjit Singh said the Punjab State Election Commission has announced the schedule for the Zila Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections across the state.

He said the announcement follows the notification issued on September 25 under Section 209 of the Punjab Panchayati Raj Act.

Providing details, he said elections in Amritsar district will be held on December 14. Voting will take place for 24 Zila Parishad zones and 195 zones of 10 Panchayat Samitis. The elections will be conducted through ballot papers, and 50 per cent of the seats in both bodies will be reserved for women.

Candidates may file their nomination papers from December 1 to 4, between 11 am and 3 pm, at the offices of designated Returning Officers. Scrutiny of nomination papers will be carried out on December 5, while December 6 (till 3 pm) will be the final day for withdrawal of nominations.

Each nomination paper must include the required affidavit and, if applicable, an authorisation letter from the political party concerned, the District Election Officer added.

Voting will be held on Sunday, December 14, from 8 am to 4 pm, and counting of votes will take place on December 17 at designated centres.

The State Election Commission has fixed the election expenditure limit at Rs 2,55,000 for Zila Parishad candidates and Rs 1,10,000 for Panchayat Samiti candidates.

With the announcement of the election schedule, the Model Code of Conduct has come into immediate effect in all gram panchayats falling under these jurisdictions and will remain in force until the completion of the election process. The code of conduct is available on the State Election Commission’s website.

The Deputy Commissioner said the district administration is committed to conducting the elections in a fair, transparent and peaceful manner as per the directions of the State Election Commission.