Punjab Zila Parishad elections on December 14; model code of conduct now in force

The long-overdue Zila Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections in Punjab are all set to be held on December 14 and the results will be declared after the counting of votes on December 17.

With the announcement of the election date, the model code of conduct has come into force.

As many as 50 per cent of the seats in these elections are reserved for women, and parties will contest these elections on their own symbols.

Being held so close to the next Assembly polls, these elections are being looked upon by all parties as a litmus test for their own political standing. Assembly polls are due in another 14 months.

Announcing the schedule of elections here today, State Election Commissioner Raj Kamal Chaudhari said that 1.36 crore voters would be exercising their franchise for these elections to 23 Zila Parishads and 154 panchayat samitis. “There are 915 hyper sensitive and 3,582 sensitive locations identified by the SEC. We will be making adequate arrangements for the smooth conduct of elections, including appointment of IAS and 2010-batch PCS officers as Election Observers besides SP-rank police officers as Police Observers,” said Chaudhari.

He said that there would be 19,181 polling booths and those wishing to contest Zila Parishad polls would have to pay a nomination fee of Rs 400 and those wanting to contest the Panchayat Samiti polls will have to pay a nomination fee of Rs 200.

These elections have been due since May this year. The elections were delayed and postponed multiple times.

These elections were first delayed and postponed to October and later to December after the floods ravaged the state in August-September.

The nominations will be filed between December 1 and 4, while the papers will be scrutinised on December 5. The last date of withdrawal of nominations will be December 6.

These elections, pending since May, have faced multiple delays due to the severe floods that swept through several districts of the state in August and September.

The polls were first deferred to October and later postponed to December.