The Election Commission on Wednesday announced the bypoll schedule to fill vacancies in a Parliamentary constituency of Punjab and four Assembly constituencies in Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and Meghalaya.

The polling and counting dates of the bypolls coincide with those of the Assembly polls in Karnataka.

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Addressing a press conference here, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Rajiv Kumar said by-elections in Jalandhar parliamentary constituency in Punjab and Assembly constituencies of Jharsuguda (Odisha), Chhanbey and Suar (Uttar Pradesh) and Sohiong (Meghalaya) will be held on May 10.

Jalandhar parliamentary constituency in Punjab was lying vacant following the death of the sitting Congress MP Santokh Singh Chaudhary.

Jharsuguda Assembly constituency in Odisha was lying vacant following the murder of the then state health minister Naba Kishore Das on January 29.

Chhanbey Assembly constituency in Uttar Pradesh was lying vacant following the death of the sitting Apna Dal MLA Rahul Prakash Kol.

Suar Assembly constituency in Uttar Pradesh was lying vacant  following the disqualification of Samajwadi Party MLA Abdullah Azam Khan.

Sohiong Assembly constituency in Meghalaya was lying vacant because the poll was adjourned due to the death of a contesting candidate of the United Democratic Party (UDP).

The notification for the bypolls will be issued on April 13. While submission of nominations for the bypolls will continue till April 20, scrutiny of the same will be held on April 21.

Nominations for the by-elections can be withdrawn till April 24.

The counting of votes will be held on May 13.

However, the poll panel did not announce the bypoll schedule for Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency after Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification from the Lower House.

The CEC on Wednesday said that the Election Commission is in no hurry to announce bypoll to Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has 30 days to exercise judicial remedy in the 2019 defamation case. The CEC said the trial court in Surat has given Rahul Gandhi 30 days to seek a judicial remedy. “There is no hurry, we will wait,” he added.

The CEC said the vacancy in the Wayanad parliamentary party was notified on March 23 this year and as per the law, a bypoll has to be conducted within six months.

Referring to rules, he said that if the remainder of the term was less than one year, then the election will not be held. In the case of Wayanad, the remainder of the term is more than a year.