Election Commission Announces March 16 Date for Rajya Sabha Biennial Polls Across 10 States, 37 Seats At Stake
NEW DELHI: The Election Commission (EC) on Wednesday announced that biennial elections to fill 37 Rajya Sabha seats falling vacant across 10 states in April will be held on March 16, with votes to be counted later the same day.
Polling will be conducted between 9am and 4pm, followed by vote counting beginning at 5pm, the commission stated. The vacancies are being created as the terms of 37 Upper House members come to an end in April 2026.
As per the election schedule released by the poll panel, the official notification will be issued on February 26. The last date for filing nominations has been set as March 5, with scrutiny of nominations on March 6. Candidates will have until March 9 to withdraw from the contest.
10 States to Send New Representatives to Upper House
The biennial polls cover Maharashtra, Odisha, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Assam, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, and Bihar states where one or more sitting members are completing their tenure.
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Among the prominent MPs retiring this cycle are Upendra Kushwaha, Priyanka Chaturvedi, Tiruchi Siva, Saket Gokhale, Ramdas Athawale, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Sharad Pawar, Bhagwat Karad, Mamata Mohanta, Rameswar Teli, Indu Bala Goswami, K.T.S. Tulsi, N.R. Elango, Amarendra Dhari Singh, and Kiran Choudhry.
EC Deploys Observers, Issues Ballot Pen Guidelines
To ensure transparency and fairness in the process, the commission said it will deploy observers in each of the participating states to oversee proceedings. The EC also directed that only integrated violet sketch pens supplied by the respective Returning Officers be used for marking preferences on ballot papers, adding that no other writing instrument will be permitted.
Reiterating its commitment to an impartial electoral process, the EC said the biennial elections will be completed within the prescribed constitutional timeline to uphold the integrity of the Rajya Sabha electoral process.