Gujarat Assembly elections: Phase 1 of polls to be notified

The notification for the first phase of Gujarat Assembly elections, which are slated to be held on December 9, will be issued on Tuesday.

According to officials, the Election Commission (EC) will issue the gazette notification, which marks formal commencement of the election process in 89 Assembly seats going to polls in the first phase.

"The process for conducting the elections will begin with issuance of the notification tomorrow. In short, the real action will start now," said a senior official. The BJP is likely to announce its list of candidates for the first phase on Wednesday, while Congress is likely to announce about 70-80 candidates a day later. According to officials, November 21 is the last day for filing nominations for the first phase.

For the second phase of polling, which is slated for December 14, the notification will be issued on November 20.

The BJP is eyeing a sixth consecutive victory in Assembly elections in Gujarat, having won each one since 1995 with a big margin. However, the Congress party is hopeful of breaking the 22-year-old jinx by defeating the BJP.

Schedule for Phase I

Notification        Nov 14
Last day of nominations Nov 21
Scrutiny of nominations Nov 22
Last day for withdrawal Nov 24
Date of polling        Dec 09
Date of counting        Dec 18