Rajasthan Assembly Election 2023: EC changes polling date to Nov 25 due to 'large-scale weddings'

The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday changed the poll dates of Rajasthan Assembly elections from November 23 to November 25 in view of demands for a change given "large-scale" weddings in the state that day.

The ECI, in a statement, said the decision was taken after representations made by various political parties and social organisations for a change of the date of the poll "considering large-scale wedding/social engagements on that day (November 23) which may cause inconvenience to a large number of people, various logistic issues and may lead to reduced voters participation during poll".

"The Commission, having considered these factors and representations, has decided to change the date of poll from 23rd November, 2023 (Thursday) to 25th November, 2023 (Saturday)," it said.

On Monday, the poll panel had announced November 23 as the polling day for Rajasthan, which coincided with Dev Uthani Ekadashi, an auspicious occasion when more than 50,000 weddings are likely to take place in the state as the festival marks the beginning of the wedding season.

The other dates related to the poll such as the issuance of notification and the last date for withdrawing candidature will remain unchanged. The counting of votes will take place on December 3.

Rajasthan has 200 Assembly constituencies. The term of the Rajasthan Assembly ends on January 14, 2024. Currently, a Congress-led government is in power in the state.

The voter turnout in the 2018 Rajasthan Assembly polls was 74.71 per cent.

The poll panel had announced the assembly poll schedule for Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram on Monday.

The polling schedule for the other states will remain unchanged. Elections will be held in Mizoram in a single phase on November 7. While polls will be held in Madhya Pradesh on November 17.

In Telangana, polling will be held in a single phase on November 30, while in Chhattisgarh, it will be held in two phases-- Phase 1 on November 7 and Phase 2 on November 17.

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