Srinagar – In a long-awaited move, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has officially announced the schedule for biennial elections to the Rajya Sabha from the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir, signaling a major step forward in the region’s democratic process.
According to the official notification issued on Tuesday, the ECI will release the formal notification on October 6, setting the ball rolling for the much-anticipated elections.
Key dates include:
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Last date for filing nominations: October 13
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Scrutiny of nominations: October 14
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Polling day: October 24 (9:00 AM to 4:00 PM)
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Counting of votes: October 24 at 5:00 PM
The four Rajya Sabha seats—once held by Mir Mohammad Fayaz, Shamsher Singh, Ghulam Nabi Azad, and Nazir Ahmed Laway—have remained vacant since February 2021 following their retirement. The delay in elections was largely due to the absence of an active legislative body after Jammu & Kashmir was reorganized into two Union Territories—J&K and Ladakh—under the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019.
Now, with the Legislative Assembly of Jammu & Kashmir reinstated, the electoral college is finally in place. This clears the path for representation in the Upper House, a development eagerly awaited by many in the region.
In alignment with a 1994 Delhi High Court ruling, the four vacant seats will be contested through three separate elections: one each for the two members who retired on February 10, 2021, and a combined election for the two who retired on February 15, 2021.
Importantly, the ECI clarified that the tenure of the new members may be subject to the Supreme Court’s decision in a pending legal matter—SLP(C) No. 17123/2015 (ECI vs. Devesh Chandra Thakur & Others).
