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EC defers polling in Ladakh, Mandi to June 21

Polling for the Lok Sabha election in Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir, besides the Mandi Lok Sabha and three assembly constituencies in Himachal Pradesh will be held on June 21 instead of February 28 as decided earlier.

Announcing this in the capital on Monday, Chief Election Commissioner Dr M S Gill said the decision was taken after a large number of representations were received saying that the climatic conditions in these constituencies would not be conducive for the electorate to exercise their franchise.

The three assembly constituencies in Himachal Pradesh are Lahaul Spiti, Kinnaur and Bharmour.

The three assembly segments in Himachal Pradesh are part of the Mandi parliamentary constituency. Assembly elections are also being held in Himachal Pradesh along with the Lok Sabha poll.

According to the representations, the weather in Ladakh, particularly in Zanskar, Lahaul Spiti, Kinnaur and Bharmour assembly segments under the Mandi constituency would not be conducive for voters, candidates, polling agents, polling officers and the security forces to access the polling stations, if polling was held on February 28.

In the past, polling in Ladakh and the assembly constituencies of Lahaul-Spiti, Kinnaur and Bharmour were generally held in summer. The residents of these constituencies came down from the hills in winter and went back when winter conditions abated, Gill said.

There had been a practice of conducting the Lok Sabha election in Mandi in part after excluding the three assembly segments due to adverse weather conditions. The votes used to be kept under lock and key for several months and counted after elections in the three assembly segments were completed.

The Commission was of the view that this practice was not satisfactory and after considering various factors, the EC, under Section 153 of the Representation of the Peoples Act of 1951, extended the date for completing the elections in these constituencies up to June 30.

After polling, the counting of votes would be taken up on June 25, Dr Gill added.

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