EC likely to announce dates for Gujarat polls on Wednesday; may carry out elections in two rounds

The Election Commission is likely to announce dates for Gujarat Assembly elections on Wednesday.

As per reports, the Gujarat assembly elections will be held in two rounds. The EC is said to have prepared for the assembly elections.

The counting of votes may happen on December 18.

The EC had on October 12 announced that polling for the assembly elections in Himachal Pradesh will take place on November 9, but held off announcing the Gujarat schedule.

The EC had just said the polling in the western state would be held before December 18.

Earlier on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi attacked Opposition over its criticism of Election Commission for not announcing Gujarat assembly election dates.

Modi, after inaugurating the ‘roll-on roll-off’ (ro-ro) ferry service from Ghogha to Dahej arrived in Vadodra and said, “Some people are not happy with my Vadodra visit, they have pain in their stomach. They can’t say anything to me, so they are putting pressure on Election Commission.”

Modi said, these people don’t have any right to “raise fingers on Election Commission.”

The Congress had alleged that the government put “pressure” on the poll panel to “delay” the announcement of Gujarat assembly poll schedule to enable the prime minister to act as a “false santa claus” and offer sops, use “jumlas” (rhetoric) during his October 16 visit to his home state.

The model code of conduct would have come into immediate effect in Gujarat had the poll schedule been announced along with Himachal Pradesh, the party had said.

Hitting back at the Congress for targeting the EC, BJP leader and Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said allegations levelled against the constitutional body were without any basis.

“It is absolutely absurd. It’s like questioning the prudence of the EC. The Congress is perhaps speaking out of its own experience where interference in the functioning of constitutional bodies used to be a thing in their rule. Such is not the case since 2014,” he had said.