CHANDIGARH, Nov 28— Punjab’s long-delayed Zila Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections will be held on December 14, with results expected on December 17, the State Election Commission announced Friday.
With the poll schedule declared, the model code of conduct has come into effect. Parties will contest on their own symbols, and 50 per cent of seats are reserved for women.
State Election Commissioner Raj Kamal Chaudhari said, “1.36 crore voters will exercise their franchise for 23 Zila Parishads and 154 Panchayat Samitis. There are 915 hyper-sensitive and 3,582 sensitive locations identified, and arrangements will include IAS and 2010-batch PCS officers as Election Observers, along with SP-rank police officers as Police Observers.”
He added that 19,181 polling booths have been set up. Nomination fees are Rs 400 for Zila Parishad and Rs 200 for Panchayat Samiti candidates. Nominations will be filed from December 1–4, scrutinised on December 5, and withdrawals accepted until December 6.
The elections, pending since May, were postponed multiple times due to August-September floods, first to October and later to December. Political analysts see the polls as a litmus test ahead of Assembly elections scheduled in 14 months.
