Deputy Commissioner of Dharwad and District Election Officer Gurudatta Hegde releasing a booklet on previous election results of Dharwad district brought out by the Department of Information and Public Relations at a press conference in Dharwad on Wednesday.
| Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
With the Deputy Commissioner of Dharwad and District Election Officer scheduled to issue the election notification on Thursday, the process for filing nomination papers in the seven Assembly segments in Dharwad district will begin at 11 a.m.
Addressing presspersons in Dharwad on Wednesday, Deputy Commissioner and District Election Officer Gurudatta Hegde said that candidates can file their nomination papers on all working days from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the offices of the respective Returning Officers (ROs).
April 20 is the last date for filing nomination papers, while scrutiny will take place on April 21. Candidates will have time till the evening of April 24 to withdraw their nomination papers after which the names of those in the fray will be announced.
Mr. Hegde said that as per the Election Commission notification, polling will be held on May 10 and counting of votes will be taken up at the University of Agricultural Sciences in Dharwad on May 13. He said that randomisation of EVMs and VVPATs has already been completed.
Polling stations
Mr. Hegde said that, in all, 1,636 polling stations will be set up and wherever the number of voters exceeded 1,500, an auxiliary booth will be set up. The district has 13 such auxiliary polling stations. As many as 216 polling stations have been identified as critical and 162 as vulnerable in the district.
Among the voters, 30,056 are new. During the 2018 elections, 16,902 new voters were added.
Mr. Hegde said that, in all, there were 15,07,414 voters, including 7,57,522 male, 7,49,807 female and 85 of the third gender.
Poll code
The District Election Officer said that for ensuring strict implementation of the model code of conduct, along with special squads, check-posts have been set up at 24 places.
So far, ₹18.92 lakh in cash, liquor worth ₹4.90 lakh, drugs worth ₹6.18 lakh, freebies worth ₹21.15 lakh, saris valued at ₹25.12 lakh, milk worth ₹7.23 lakh, rice worth ₹6.15 lakh and precious metals worth ₹44.70 lakh being transported without valid documents have been seized.
To a query regarding procession or rally that may be taken out by candidates and their supporters during the filing of nomination papers, Mr. Hegde said that if day-to-day activity is affected due to such events, action will be taken against candidates as it will be considered a violation of the election guidelines issued by the Election Commission of India.