Notification issued for 5 Lok Sabha seats in Assam

Guwahati: The notification for the first phase of polls to the five Lok Sabha seats in Assam on April 19 was issued on Wednesday, an election office official said.

Elections to the 14 Sabha constituencies in Assam will be held in the first three phases on April 19, 26 and May 7.

In the first phase, Kaziranga, Sonitpur, Lakhimpur, Dibrugarh and Lakhimpur will go to the polls on April 19.

Five constituencies each will go to the polls in the first and second phases while in the third, polling will be held in four seats.

The last date of filing of nominations is March 27, scrutiny of nominations will be on March 28 and the last date of withdrawal of candidature is March 30 for the first phase.

The prominent candidates likely to be in the fray for the first phase are Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal from Dibrugarh against the United Opposition Front of Assam (UOFA's) Lurinjyoti Gogoi, Congress Deputy Leader in Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi against sitting BJP MP Topon Gogoi from Jorhat and BJP Rajya Sabha MP Kamakhya Prasad Tasa against former Congress MLA Roselina Tirkey in Kaziranga.

The counting of votes of all seats will be held on June 4.

In the outgoing house, BJP held nine seats, Congress three, AIUDF and an Independent one from the state.