By IANS
New Delhi : The Election Commission Monday announced the poll schedule for the state assemblies of three northeastern states of Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland.
Chief Election Commissioner N. Gopalaswamy told reporters that Tripura will go to polls Feb 23, followed by Meghalaya on March 3 and Nagaland March 5.
The counting of votes will be held for Tripura and Meghalaya on March 7 and for Nagaland on March 8.
The terms of the three assemblies end on March 10, March 13 and March 19 respectively. Nagaland was placed under president’s rule early this month.
The electoral rolls valid on Jan 1, 2008 will be used for the polls in the three states.
Dates for notification for Tripura is Jan 30, last date for nomination is Feb 6, scrutiny will be on Feb 7 and the date for withdrawal of nomination is Feb 9.
For Meghalaya, the date for notification is Feb 8, the last date for filing nomination is Feb 15, scrutiny will take place Feb 16 and the candidature can be withdrawn by Feb 18.
For Nagaland, the date of notification is Feb 9, filing of nomination will end Feb 16 and scrutiny will be on Feb 18 while the last date for withdrawal is Feb 20.
The Meghalaya assembly has 60 seats, of which 55 are reserved for the Scheduled Tribes. Nagaland has 60 seats, of which 59 are reserved for the Scheduled Tribes. In Tripura, 20 of the 60 seats are reserved for the Scheduled Tribes and seven for the Scheduled Castes.
The electoral photo identity cards (EPIC) will be used for the first time in Tripura and Meghalaya in these polls.