ECI announces polls for J&K quota of Rajya Sabha seats on October 24

STC NEWS MONITORING DESK
NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 24 (STC): After remaining unrepresented in the Upper House of Parliament since February 15, 2021, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday announced elections to four Rajya Sabha seats from Jammu and Kashmir to be held on October 24.
Notably, nearly an year ago Assembly elections were held in the region.

It was on February 15, 2021, the day when Ghulam Nabi Azad and Nazir Ahmed Laway finished their terms. Two other members, Fayaz Ahmed Mir and Shamsheer Singh Manhas, had completed their terms on February 10, the same year.
Meanwhile, while announcing the schedule, the EC said that the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir was bifurcated into the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir (with legislature) and Ladakh (without legislature).
As per the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, four sitting members of the Rajya Sabha representing the existing State of Jammu and Kashmir will be deemed to have been elected to fill the seats allocated to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
All four seats were lying vacant since the expiration of the term of the sitting members due to the non-availability of the required electorate to conduct the elections at the time of occurrence of the vacancies.
After the constitution of the State Legislative Assembly of UT of Jammu and Kashmir, there is a required electorate to conduct the Biennial Elections, it noted.
The counting of votes will take place in the evening, an hour after polling concludes same day.
(Straight Talk Communications)