Guwahati, Sept 21: The stage is set for elections to the 40-member Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) in Assam on Monday, with 316 candidates in the fray.
Polling will be held from 7.30 am to 4 pm, an official of the Assam State Election Commission said.
All necessary measures have been taken to prevent any untoward incident on the day of polling, he said.
Campaigning for the polls was intense with Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma holding rallies in all five districts, which the BTC administers, as the BJP is contesting without an alliance for the first time.
The United Peoples’ Party Liberal (UPPL), led by incumbent BTC chief Pramod Boro, and the Bodoland Peoples’ Front (BPF) also left no stone unturned in reaching out to the voters in Kokrajhar, Baksa, Chirang, Udalguri and Tamulpur.
Polling personnel have already left for the remote booths, officials said.
A total of 26,58,153 people, including 13,34,600 women, are eligible to vote in the elections.
There are 3,359 polling stations in the five districts, with 575 in Baksa, 510 in Chirang, 942 in Kokrajhar, 395 in Tamulpur and 937 in Udalguri.
Of those, 187 polling stations will be managed by female polling personnel.
Repolling, if any, will be held on September 24, the votes will be counted on September 26, and the entire election process is scheduled to be completed by September 28.
Among the 40 seats, 30 are reserved for Scheduled Tribes, five for non-STs, and the remaining five are open to both ST and non-ST candidates.
At present, the UPPL is in power in the council in coalition with the BJP and the Gana Suraksha Party (GSP).
In the last elections, the UPPL had won 12 seats, the BJP nine and GSP one seat.
The BPF, which was in power at the council for the previous three terms, emerged as the single largest party with 17 seats, and Congress secured one seat, but its member later joined the BJP.
The last council polls were held after a fresh Bodo Accord was signed in New Delhi in January 2020. (PTI)
