The Election Commission of India.
Credit: PTI Photo
Lucknow: Nomination papers of 54 candidates seeking to contest the bypolls were rejected during scrutiny on Monday, the Election Commission said.
According to the EC, in all 149 candidates had filed nomination papers.
Nomination of 22 candidates were rejected in Meerapur constituency (in Muzaffarnagar district), seven in Phulpur (Prayagraj), five each in Sisamau (Kanpur), Kundarki (Moradabad) and Ghaziabad, four in Majhwan (Mirzapur), three in Karhal (Mainpuri), two in Katehari (Ambedkarnagar), and one in Khair (SC) constituency.
The Election Commission had on October 18 issued the notification for the upcoming assembly bye-elections at nine seats.
The last date for the withdrawal of candidature is October 30.
Voting will be held on November 13, while counting of votes will be held on November 23.
The Election Commission on October 15 had announced bypolls on nine seats in UP, barring Milkipur (Ayodhya) due to a court case.
Katehari (Ambedkar Nagar), Karhal (Mainpuri), Meerapur (Muzaffarnagar), Ghaziabad, Majhawan (Mirzapur), Sishamau (Kanpur city), Khair (Aligarh), Phulpur (Prayagraj) and Kundarki (Moradabad) are facing bypolls.
Eight of these seats fell vacant after their MLAs were elected as MPs in the Lok Sabha polls, while bypoll is being held on the Sisamau seat due to the disqualification of SP MLA Irfan Solanki, who was convicted in a criminal case.
In the 2022 assembly polls, Sisamau, Katehari, Karhal, Milkipur and Kundarki were held by the SP, while the BJP had won Phulpur, Ghaziabad, Majhawan and Khair. The Meerapur seat was held by the RLD.
The ruling BJP in Uttar Pradesh on Thursday announced its candidates for eight of the nine assembly seats where bypolls will be held on November 13, leaving one seat for ally the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD).
The same day, the Congress announced it would not field candidates in the nine Assembly bypolls and would support SP or other INDIA bloc candidates.
The Congress' assertion came a day after Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said all the INDIA bloc candidates would contest the bypolls on the party's 'cycle' election symbol.