The Election Commission (EC) on Sunday announced byelections to two Rajya Sabha seats — one each from Kerala and West Bengal — to be held on November 29.
The seats fell vacant due to the resignation of the members, Jose K. Mani from Kerala on January 11 and Arpita Ghosh from West Bengal on September 15.
The EC had on May 28 decided “that due to the outbreak of the second wave of COVID-19 in the country, it would not be appropriate to hold byelection to the Council of States from Kerala till the pandemic situation significantly improves and conditions become conducive to hold byelection”.
Now, having re-assessed the situation in Kerala, the commission said it decided to announce the schedule for byelections in Kerala and West Bengal.
The EC also announced biennial elections to six Telangana and three Andhra Pradesh MLC seats that fell vacant after the retirement of members in June and May respectively. The EC also announced the byelection to one Maharashtra MLC seat that fell vacant due to the member’s death last month. The polling and counting for all seats would be held on November 29.