Lucknow, April 8 : Polling for 27 seats of local bodies constituencies of Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council began peacefully amidst tight security on Saturday. Polling which started at 8 am will continue till 4 pm. Counting will be held on April 12. According to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), “The 27 local bodies constituencies where polling is being held are spread over 58 districts,” he said. The CEO office said that 1,20,657 candidates are eligible to vote and will decide the electoral fate of 95 candidates in the fray. “Polling is being held at 739 polling booths,” it said. It may be noted that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidates have already been elected unopposed on 9 seats. In Mirzapur-Sonbhadra seat BJP candidate Vinit Singh has been elected unopposed after Samajwadi Party (SP) candidate refused to contest the election. In the Badaun seat BJP candidate Vagish Pathak has been elected unopposed as SP candidate Vinod Kumar Shakya withdrew his nomination. Similarly, on Hardoi seat SP candidate Raziuddin withdrew his nomination after which BJP candidate Ashok Agarwal was elected unopposed. In the Aligarh-Hathras seat victory became easier for BJP candidate Chaudhary Rishi Pal Singh after the nomination of SP candidate Jaswant Singh was rejected during scrutiny. In the Mathura-Etah- Mainpuri seat too nominations of both the candidates of SP were rejected. In the Ghazipur seat SP nominee Bhola Nath Shukla withdrew his nomination paving way for BJP nominee Vishal Singh Chanchal to be elected unopposed. In the Lakhimpur Kheri seat nomination of SP candidate Anurag Patel was rejected during scrutiny. In Bulandshahr-Gautam Buddha Nagar seat SP and Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) alliance fielded a joint candidate, but he withdrew his nomination paper at the last moment. It may be noted that elected representatives of the urban local bodies elect MLCs on these 36 seats. Besides, local MLAs and MPs, being ex-officio members of the local bodies, also participate in the poll process.
Agencies report
