Decode Politics: Anantnag-Rajouri to vote on May 25 now; when are polls put off?

On Tuesday, the Election Commission announced that polls for the Anantnag-Rajouri parliamentary seat were being deferred, days after some political parties demanded the same because of inclement weather, which has blocked road connectivity between different parts of the constituency.

Instead of May 7, polls will be held in the seat now on May 25.

The parties which wrote to the EC seeking rescheduling of the polls included the BJP, Peoples Conference, Apni Party and Democratic Azad Party. While the BJP is not contesting the elections, the two political heavyweights and main contenders in the seat, the National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), had opposed any postponement.

In its notification, the poll panel said: “After considering the report from the UT administration as well as analysing the ground situation prevailing in the said constituency, (it) has decided under Section 56 of the Representation of the People Act (RPA), 1951, to revise the date of poll.”

The Section empowers the EC to notify the hours for the conduct of the polls. “The Election Commission shall fix the hours during which the poll will be taken; and the hours so fixed shall be published in such a manner as may be prescribed: provided that the total period allotted on any one day for polling at an election in a parliamentary or Assembly constituency shall not be less than eight hours,” reads the Section.

Section 57 (1) of the Act empowers the EC to defer elections under certain circumstances, including the death of a candidate of a registered political party before polling, natural disasters and other disruptions.

As per the Section, “If at an election, the proceedings of any polling station provided under Section 25 or at the place fixed