As per an Election Commission of India official, 985 candidates in Kerala, 789 in Assam, and 366 in Puducherry have been approved to run in the upcoming Assembly elections on April 9. The final candidate lineup may change if withdrawals occur before Friday’s deadline.
The nomination scrutiny process has left 50 candidates in the fray for bypolls in two seats in Karnataka. Additionally, in Goa, Nagaland, and Tripura, a few candidates are set to contest for single Assembly seats. The scrutiny process was conducted transparently, with videography to ensure fairness.
The Election Commission of India had set the nomination deadline for Assam, Kerala, Puducherry, and four other states on March 23. The schedule for the elections was announced on March 15, covering various states and Union Territories. Flying squads and Surveillance Teams have seized illicit inducements worth over Rs 408.82 crore.
More than 5,173 Flying squads and 5,200 Static Surveillance Teams are actively working to maintain the integrity of the electoral process. The teams have confiscated cash, liquor, drugs, precious metals, and other items used for inducement. The Election Commission emphasized the importance of reporting model code of conduct violations promptly using the C-Vigil Module on ECINET.
