Nomination process for Jharkhand’s first phase of elections to begin tomorrow

Ranchi: The Election Commission will issue a notification on Friday (October 18) for the first phase of elections in Jharkhand, covering 43 assembly seats. After the notification, candidates can begin filing their nomination papers.

Jharkhand’s Chief Electoral Officer, K. Ravi Kumar, provided details about the nomination process and associated guidelines during a press conference at the Nirvachan Sadan, here on Thursday.

Nominations will be accepted at the Returning Officer’s (RO) office between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. Each candidate is allowed to bring a maximum of four people into the RO’s chamber, he said.

As per the guidelines, candidates representing registered political parties require one proposer, while independent or unrecognized party candidates must have ten proposers. Only three vehicles are permitted within 100 meters of the RO’s office.

Candidates must ensure their name is listed on any Assembly voter list in the state. Additionally, they can now submit their nomination forms online via the Election Commission’s ‘Suvidha’ app.

When filing the nomination, candidates must provide three recent passport-size photographs, a copy of their educational qualification certificate, a copy of a new bank account opened for election purposes, and an affidavit (Form 26).

This affidavit must detail the candidate’s assets, liabilities, loans, and any criminal record. All election-related transactions must be made through the designated bank account.

To track election expenses, two registers will be maintained — one with the candidate and the other with the election office. The spending limit for candidates in this election is set at Rs 40 lakh. The nomination fee is Rs 10,000 for general category candidates and Rs 5,000 for candidates from scheduled categories.

The deadline for filing nomination papers for the first phase is October 25, with scrutiny scheduled for October 28. Candidates have until October 30 to withdraw their nominations.

Jharkhand is going to polls in two phases. Voting for the first phase will take place on November 13 and for the second phase on November 20. The counting will be held on November 23.

— IANS