CHANDIGARH: The elections to the 51 urban local bodies (ULBs) in Himachal Pradesh, which include 4 Municipal Corporations, Dharamshala, Palampur, Mandi, and Solan, besides 25 Municipal Councils and 22 Nagar Panchayats, will be held in a single phase on May 17.
The State Election Commission has indicated that Panchayat elections for rural areas will be organised separately, with dates yet to be determined.
Currently, the Model Code of Conduct applies solely to the four Municipal Corporations and other urban bodies, following the election notification issued today.
The nomination process will begin on April 29 and 30. The candidates can withdraw their nomination by May 6, and the counting of votes for the four corporations will take place on May 31.
Talking to the media in Shimla, State Election Commissioner Anil Khachi said that there are a total of 449 wards that will go to polls in these 51 ULBs, where the model code of conduct came into force immediately after the announcement of the election schedule today.
"While the elections for the four MCs will be based on party symbols, which will be allotted to the recognised party candidates, the polls of Nagar Panchayat and Nagar Parishad elections will not be held on a party symbol basis,” he said.
He added that the counting of votes for the Nagar Parishads and Nagar Panchayats will be undertaken immediately after polling on May 17. The counting for the four Municipal Corporations will take place on May 31.
Khachi further said elections will be held in all those ULBs in which the roster has been received by the SEC and where special revision of electoral rolls was completed yesterday.
He said the election schedule for the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) will be announced later. He added that having a vote registered at two places, whether in a rural area and in an ULB, will amount to an election offence.
The court has set a deadline of May 31 for holding panchayat polls in the state, and as such, the poll schedule for the PRIs is likely to be announced within a few days.