Bhubaneswar: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Saturday has announced the schedule for Padampur by-election in Odisha.
As per the schedule, the polling will be held on December 5 and the counting of votes on December 8.
The Gazette Notification for the bypoll will be issued on November 10 and the last date of receiving nominations will be on November 17.
The scrutiny of nominations will be held on November 18 while the last date for withdrawal of candidatures is November 21.
Model Code of Conduct has come into force in Bargarh district with immediate effect with the announcement of the by-poll.
The Commission has decided to use EVMs and VVPATs in the bye-election in all the polling stations. Adequate numbers of EVMs and VVPATs have been made available and all steps have been taken to ensure that the poll is conducted smoothly with the help of these machines.
Worth mentioning, the election is being conducted after the death of Padampur MLA Bijaya Ranjan Singh Bariha of Bargarh district on October 3.
The senior BJD leader Bariha breathed his last while undergoing treatment at a private hospital. Bijaya Ranjan Bariha had been elected five times as MLA from Padampur.
Ms Kalinga